Marathon evening floor session confirms continued Senate GOP fracture
With a frigid snowstorm outside, and bowls of popcorn Doordashed from Cinemark and mounting tensions inside, the Montana Senate held a late-night floor session on Monday, renewing the power struggles within the chamber.
Convening after sunset, a coalition of nine Republicans and the Senate's 18 Democrats flexed its 'working majority' muscles to run the floor for more than three hours.
The group rearranged committee assignments and moved 20 House bills from the Senate President's desk into committee — allowable actions, but ones normally undertaken by leadership.
'Absolutely ridiculous. It's absurd,' Senate Majority Leader Tom McGillvray, R-Billings, said. 'In 20 years, we've never seen this kind of antics.'
The actions on the floor, led by Sen. Josh Kassmier, R-Fort Benton, represented the latest show of power for the coalition government that formed on the first day of the session when minority leader Sen. Pat Flowers led a vote not to adopt rules and committee assignments decided by GOP leadership.
Since then, accusations of politicking, stalled Senate actions and an ethical and criminal investigation into one of the nine Republican senators have heightened tensions and deepened the political divides in the upper chamber.
'I think the goal is to make it look like there's been nefarious deeds done with House bills, by leadership, to try to discredit leadership and then make a further decision to get rid of leadership.' said Sen. Daniel Zolnikov, R-Billings.
After the committee assignments changed, Kassmier announced he had more than 20 additional motions to make, including referring a series of House bills transmitted to the Senate to a committee.
Kassmier said there were dozens of bills sitting on the Senate President's desk waiting to be referred to committee, many which were transmitted weeks ago.
'I don't know why we'd hold bills,' Kassmier said. 'I would think we should get them out to committee and get them scheduled for hearings and not be holding up any House bills so they don't hold up our Senate bills.'
While in the lower chamber, House rules require the Speaker refer bills to committee within two days of transmission from the Senate, but no similar rule exists for the Senate.
According to Senate Republicans, there were between 45 and 70 House bills waiting for referral earlier this week, depending on the day, with around 10 to 15 bills coming from the House each day, and around the same number getting referred to committee each day.
Ellsworth urged members to support all 20 motions to refer bills, saying that if a committee has a bill in hand, they can choose when to schedule it based on workload.
'This is what we do. We schedule bills,' Ellsworth said. 'This is the process.'
Ellsworth's continued alignment with Democrats and 'The Nine' has furthered the rift in the Senate following a report that he'd procured a $170,100 contract with a business associate late last year.
The Legislative Audit Division released findings that the contract flouted state procurement laws and Ellsworth had abused his former role as Senate president, wasting state resources. The Senate convened its Ethics Committee to look into the issue, but later referred the investigation to the Montana Department of Justice.
As the floor session continued into the night, pizza showed up outside the Senate doors, sending members back and forth for a bite to eat. During one break when the Senate stood at ease, Sen. Ellie Boldman, a Missoula Democrat, doled out handfuls of the popcorn she'd ordered.
Throughout Monday night's debate, several Republicans, including Zolnikov, said that the priority has to be on Senate bills, as the deadline for moving legislation between chambers approaches and the workload will continue to ramp up as legislators' final bill drafts get delivered.
Almost all of the 20 motions to refer bills — two had already been referred to committee — were debated on the floor, with several senators rising on every single bill to reiterate their same points and stretch the session longer.
Sen. Jeremy Trebas, R-Great Falls, repeatedly questioned why they would rush House bills through the Senate before the transmittal break, why the regular process was being subverted, and mentioned the ongoing snowstorm outside the Capitol windows as a reason to delay bill hearings that could bring members of the public out in bad weather.
'I'm going to wonder on these bills, if the sponsors of the bills are worried about the political fallout that could come from this odd process to refer bills,' Trebas mused. 'Or maybe, on these bills, the votes are already wrapped up.'
Zolnikov added that some of the bills appeared to be directed to improper committees, and that the bills needed to be read through in order to make an educated decision on where to send them — he proceeded to read the short titles of several bills into the record to try and gain clarity.
While the Republicans in the functional minority continued to decry the actions as arbitrary and obstructive, the working majority claimed they were just trying to do the work they were sent to Helena to do.
'These motions were very simple motions to get bills moving. Had these bills not been sitting for the last six weeks, we would not be here tonight,' said Sen. Russ Tempel, R-Chester, another member of 'The Nine,' who expressed his disappointment with the ongoing debates. 'We can play this game all night if you want, but these were simple motions to get these bills moving, and if you want to mess with it, fine.'
Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Senate President Regier criticized the Democrats and 'solution caucus Republicans' for running the Senate floor.
'To me, it was just an embarrassment, obviously a political play one way or another,' Regier said. 'It was nothing to do with logistics.'
Minority Leader Pat Flowers, D-Belgrade, said that he agreed with the tactics Kassmier took during the floor session and wanted to help jump start the referral process so the Senate could 'get moving.'
'(Kassmier) made the choice to kind of force this, and we supported him on it,' Flowers said. 'I don't know how much more clear I can be that that should be a priority for the President to get those scheduled… He knows that's part of his responsibility, and hopefully he'll start getting that done.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
It's Your Call for Aug. 21
Will never vote for the GOP again Donald Trump has effectively ruined the Republican Party. I'll never vote Republican again. Never win another election If the Democrats' only policy is to fight Trump on everything, you will never win another election. Thank you for that. Poor planning I just delivered a grandson to Mid-Buch school, a two-lane road that was full of traffic. So that's the day MoDOT decided to mow the road and blocked one lane. Somebody needs to wake up out there. Pot calling kettle black Governor Kehoe accuses the Democrats of gerrymandering. President Trump admits to gerrymandering so he can gain another seat in the house in the state of Texas. Rejecting reality It's time for Trump to admit that Russia invaded Ukraine, not that Ukraine invaded Russia, but then that should come right after he admits that he lost the election to Biden. His ability to reject reality is truly amazing. Taking notes from Putin Is it not comforting to hear that our fearless leader is taking advice on how to run elections from someone who has basically run corrupt rigged elections for years? Putin says mail in ballots are bad, his little puppet jumps to issue an executive order to ban them. Pretty sure they discussed elections more than they did the war in Ukraine while in Alaska.
Los Angeles Times
23 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Appeals court throws out massive civil fraud penalty against President Trump
NEW YORK — An appeals court has thrown out the massive civil fraud penalty against President Donald Trump, ruling Thursday in New York state's lawsuit accusing him of exaggerating his wealth. The decision came seven months after the Republican returned to the White House. A panel of five judges in New York's mid-level Appellate Division said the verdict, which stood to cost Trump more than $515 million and rock his real estate empire, was 'excessive.' After finding that Trump engaged in fraud by flagrantly padding financial statements that went to lenders and insurers, Judge Arthur Engoron ordered him last year to pay $355 million in penalties. With interest, the sum has topped $515 million. The total — combined with penalties levied on some other Trump Organization executives, including Trump's sons Eric and Donald Jr. — now exceeds $527 million, with interest. 'While the injunctive relief ordered by the court is well crafted to curb defendants' business culture, the court's disgorgement order, which directs that defendants pay nearly half a billion dollars to the State of New York, is an excessive fine that violates the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution,' Judges Dianne T. Renwick and Peter H. Moulton wrote in one of several opinions shaping the appeals court's ruling. Engoron also imposed other punishments, such as banning Trump and his two eldest sons from serving in corporate leadership for a few years. Those provisions have been on pause during Trump's appeal, and he was able to hold off collection of the money by posting a $175 million bond. The court, which was split on the merits of the lawsuit and the lower court's fraud finding, dismissed the penalty Engoron imposed in its entirety while also leaving a pathway for further appeals to the state's highest court, the Court of Appeals. The appeals court, the Appellate Division of the state's trial court, took an unusually long time to rule, weighing Trump's appeal for nearly 11 months after oral arguments last fall. Normally, appeals are decided in a matter of weeks or a few months. New York Attorney General Letitia James, who brought the suit on the state's behalf, has said the businessman-turned-politician engaged in 'lying, cheating, and staggering fraud.' Her office had no immediate comment after Thursday's decision. Trump and his co-defendants denied wrongdoing. In a six-minute summation of sorts after a monthslong trial, Trump proclaimed in January 2024 that he was 'an innocent man' and the case was a 'fraud on me.' He has repeatedly maintained that the case and verdict were political moves by James and Engoron, who are both Democrats. Trump's Justice Department has subpoenaed James for records related to the lawsuit, among other documents, as part of an investigation into whether she violated the president's civil rights. James' personal attorney, Abbe D. Lowell, has said that investigating the fraud case is 'the most blatant and desperate example of this administration carrying out the president's political retribution campaign.' Trump and his lawyers said his financial statements weren't deceptive, since they came with disclaimers noting they weren't audited. The defense also noted that bankers and insurers independently evaluated the numbers, and the loans were repaid. Despite such discrepancies as tripling the size of his Trump Tower penthouse, he said the financial statements were, if anything, lowball estimates of his fortune. During an appellate court hearing in September, Trump's lawyers argued that many of the case's allegations were too old, an assertion they made unsuccessfully before trial. The defense also contends that James misused a consumer-protection law to sue Trump and improperly policed private business transactions that were satisfactory to those involved. State attorneys said the law in question applies to fraudulent or illegal business conduct, whether it targets everyday consumers or big corporations. Though Trump insists no one was harmed by the financial statements, the state contends that the numbers led lenders to make riskier loans than they knew, and that honest borrowers lose out when others game their net-worth numbers. The state has argued that the verdict rests on ample evidence and that the scale of the penalty comports with Trump's gains, including his profits on properties financed with the loans and the interest he saved by getting favorable terms offered to wealthy borrowers. The civil fraud case was just one of several legal obstacles for Trump as he campaigned, won and segued to a second term as president. On Jan. 10, he was sentenced in his criminal hush money case to what's known as an unconditional discharge, leaving his conviction on the books but sparing him jail, probation, a fine or other punishment. He is appealing the conviction. And in December, a federal appeals court upheld a jury's finding that Trump sexually abused writer E. Jean Carroll in the mid-1990s and later defamed her, affirming a $5 million judgment against him. The appeals court declined in June to reconsider; he still can try to get the Supreme Court to hear his appeal. He's also appealing a subsequent verdict that requires him to pay Carroll $83.3 million for additional defamation claims. Peltz and Sisak write for the Associated Press.
The Hill
23 minutes ago
- The Hill
Newsom trolling spree shows signs of success; Bannon gives California governor credit
Nobody is getting under MAGA's skin quite like California Gov. Gavin Newsom. And it's not just comical — it's effective. Every cable news channel is talking about him, weekly if not daily. Newsom, who many believe is a likely contender for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028, has taken a page straight from Donald Trump's playbook. He's leaning into Trump's bombastic posting style and serving it back to him, stunt for stunt. His trolling includes a photoshopped image of Mount Rushmore with his face on it, a mock-up of himself as a king on the cover of Time magazine, and even an AI-generated image of Newsom surrounded by Tucker Carlson, the late Hulk Hogan and Kid Rock — before writing in all caps that he hates Kid Rock. It sounds silly, and that's the point. The déjà vu effect is meant to hold up a mirror to Trumpworld, showing Republicans exactly how absurd their tactics look from the outside. And let's be honest — it's working. The numbers back it up. CNN's chief data analyst Harry Enten — Robby's favorite pollster — says the X account for Newsom's press office has seen a 450 percent increase in followers since June. Google searches for Newsom? Up 1,300 percent since June 1, and 500 percent since August 1. Those are the kinds of surges you don't see without traction. And there's a deeper story behind this strategy. In a recent interview with Fox 11 Los Angeles, Newsom explained the moment he decided to put his foot down against Trump: 'I think it connects here in L.A. and the fires, and how he was completely misrepresenting the facts—misinformation, disinformation. Elon Musk was piling on as well.' Reporter: 'You were really angry then. We spoke to you.' Newsom: 'Yea, because I've never seen anything like it, in the middle of an emergency, all the lies, all the misrepresentations, all the untruths — and they became gospel and they were spread around the world. And it was a big wake-up call, and we got back on our feet, and we go back on the offense.' He wasn't done there… 'And then when the National Guard was federalized, what the hell is going on? You saw ICE out here today. You know what that is? That is a preview for things to come. Mark my word. I said this a couple months ago with the National Guard — I said that was a preview for the rest of the country. That's exactly what happened in Washington, D.C. That's gonna continue to happen across this country unless we're successful.' And then he said: 'So yes, I've changed. The facts have changed. We need to change. And we need to stand up to this authoritarian.' Now, people can argue that Newsom is lowering himself by mocking the president. But one thing you can't deny is that it's been effective. And that's not just Democrats talking — even Steve Bannon is giving him credit. 'If you look at the Democratic Party, he's at least getting up there, and he's trying to imitate a Trumpian vision of fighting, right? He looks like the only person in the Democratic Party who is organizing a fight that they feel they can win.' Bannon went on to say, 'People in the MAGA movement and the America First movement should start paying attention to this, because it's not going to go away, they're only going to get more intense.' So here's the thesis: Gavin Newsom isn't just trolling Donald Trump. He's stress-testing a strategy — and the numbers, the buzz, and even Trump's allies all suggest it's working. For years, Democrats have struggled to figure out how to fight Trump on his own turf. Newsom might have just cracked the code.
