Missoula Continues to Waste Money
I told you yet another in a seemingly-endless line of examples of wasteful Missoula spending last month, and last night we learned of another.
It seems the City of Missoula is going to spend upwards of $25,000 on legal representation so they can take their gun background check law to the district court.
You might remember the ruckus over this back in October 2015, as well as the fact that AG Tim Fox overturned the municipal ordinance a month or so later.
Now, over two years later, Missoula feels it can win…if they just spend $25,000 with a local law firm.
Meanwhile our roads continue to deteriorate, taxes are so high that other residents need to pay the bills for struggling homeowners, and young people have to leave to find a future.
Perhaps Missoula will succeed. In addition to the law firm they’ve hired, they have a Bloomberg-group lawyer working for free.
I just don’t think gun violence is a big issue in Missoula. Sure, Montana ranks 6th in gun-related deaths, but 83% are suicides.
By last September, there were already 25 suicides in Missoula, with 72% caused by guns.
It seems to me that suicide is a much bigger issue than guns, and perhaps we should talk more about mental health.
Goodness, I can’t help but think $25,000 would go a long way in addressing mental health issues!
Instead we’ll give that money to lawyers, so they can buy fancier clothes and shinier shoes.
That’s one of my biggest frustrations with the recent gun debate – it’s all about guns!
When oh when will we begin talking about the underlying issues that spur people to reach for that gun…whether it’s to kill someone else, or themselves?
Green Party Hearing
There’s a hearing scheduled for Tuesday, April 24 at 1:30 PM in Helena to determine if the Montana Democrats have just cause for an injunction against the Green Party.
I’m not sure the location, but hopefully the media will report on it soon.
Is it Spite or Economic Sense Driving the MT GOP?
When it comes to Medicaid expansion, Montana legislative Republicans aren’t concerned about money, just spite.
We see that clearly in the recent articles about this subject.
Even with the state on the line for more of the prior federal funding that propped Obamacare up, the State of Montana will state save money overall on healthcare if they continue with this program.
In 2016 the state spent $5.3 million but saved $18 million. The article doesn’t explain how these savings came about, but I’m assuming it’s through preventative care, which often negates costlier care further down the road.
The program has also created 5,000 jobs.
Republicans, led on this issue by Nancy Balance, have questioned the value of those jobs as well as the overall economic reasoning of the reports. They do have a point – by 2020 the state will spend $70 million but will only see savings of $42 million, meaning Medicaid expansion will create a $28 million deficit.
Will the $270 million going “back into the pockets of Montanans,” as well as the upwards of $400 million a year in new spending seen in the state, make up for this?
I don’t know.
I’m sure we’ll hear more of this from the GOP as we get closer to the next session, which starts in about 9 months.
I fully expect that by July 2019, Obamacare in Montana will be done. It’ll be a Party-line vote around this time next year. I suspect this will cause thousands to leave the state for Obamacare states.
Republicans probably want this. Less riff-raff to deal with, and more open spaces for themselves.
Americans are Sick of It
When it comes to Stormy Daniels and other women that Trump probably slept with, and probably paid off, well…Americans are just sick of it.
Sick of hearing about it, that is.
Yeah, 73% of people say “that this alleged affair is not an important issue.”
In total, 58% of people believe the affair happened. And 59% think Trump knew his lawyer paid her off.
But they don’t care.
I wish someone would tell the corporate media about that, as they can’t seem to stop talking about it.
Mostly, Dems want to get rid of Trump, they think this might win them the House in the midterms, and then they can vote to impeach.
Sure, the Senate won’t vote to convict, but who cares? They got their headlines and they can feel good about themselves.
Meanwhile, average Americans continue to struggle with low-paying jobs, piss-poor health insurance, no retirement, towns that are falling apart around them, and a bleak outlook for how their own kids’ lives may be.
Yeah, this country’s screwed up.
