May 17, 2021
HELENA – Attorney General Austin Knudsen led an effort of 19 state attorneys general today calling on President Joe Biden to support additional energy infrastructure – including the Keystone XL pipeline – following the Colonial pipeline shutdown that caused price spikes, fuel shortages, and Carter-style lines at gas stations across the south and east coast. In a letter to Biden, they detailed the harm caused by his purported cancelation of the Keystone XL pipeline and urged Biden to put Americans’ national security and the environment first.
The Colonial pipeline situation showed the widespread panic and disruption that can result when just one pipeline system goes off-line. In the aftermath of the cyberattack, the Biden administration quickly relaxed environmental and safety rules to “secur[e] critical energy supply chains … alleviate shortages … [and] avoid[] potential energy supply disruptions to impacted communities.”
Montana’s Schools Superintendent Pushes Back Against Critical Race Theory In Schools
Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen is pushing back against the federal education department for proposing a program that would teach educators how to incorporate racially and culturally diverse perspectives into their lesson plans.
In a memo, Arntzen says she takes issue with the proposed program using the New York Times’ 1619 Project on the history of slavery and teachings about antiracism.
She wrote that these teachings are similar to what’s known as critical race theory, and that she doesn’t want that taught in Montana schools. Critical race theory says that systemic racism is a social construct ingrained in American life and laws.
Foster parents needed in Montana
May is National Foster Care Awareness month. There are currently 4,000 foster kids placed in Montana and even more kids waiting for a foster home.
Foster kids like to play tag, kick a soccer ball, and help make dinner. They wait for the tooth fairy, forget to hang up their coat, and hope for the biggest piece of birthday cake. Unfortunately, they also have adult-size worries. They have experienced significant early childhood trauma â abuse, neglect, exposure to drugs and alcohol, and homelessness. Loss is a common theme â loss of family, safety and the freedom to be a child.
Today
Mostly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 67F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph..
Tonight
Considerable cloudiness. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 46F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph. Updated: May 14, 2021 @ 12:19 pm
MT Supreme Court rejects AG request to disqualify itself in email case
Court says Legislature `manufactured a conflict
Mike Dennison-MTN News
By: Mike Dennison
and last updated 2021-05-12 18:05:22-04
HELENA â A unanimous Montana Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a request by Attorney General Austin Knudsen to disqualify all seven of its justices from the case involving its internal documents and alleged bias.
Justice Laurie McKinnon, writing for the high court, said the Republican-led Legislature has âmanufactured a conflictâ by issuing subpoenas to the justices, seeking the documents â and that attacking a court or judge is not sufficient grounds to force them to step down from the case.