Is the MTGOP Anti-Constitution? Let Us Count the Ways.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, February 14, 2022
CONTACT
press@montanademocrats.org
Is the MTGOP Anti-Constitution? Let Us Count the Ways.
Helena, MT – The MT GOP has spent the last year publicly bashing the Montana Constitution, threatening to throw it out, and advancing legislation that clearly contradicts the rights it protects.
Here are some low points:
In a taped radio interview this summer, Rep. Derek Skees said, “You’ve heard me say repeatedly: I think the Montana Constitution is horrible. It needs to be thrown out and redone.”
In November, Representative Derek Skees (R-Kalispell) said the constitution was a “rag,” and he called for it to be “thrown out”.
Earlier this month, Attorney General Austin Knudsen took a stunning step and asked the Montana Supreme Court to vacate a long-standing filing that protects Montanans’ right to reproductive health care privacy.
The Gianforte administration continues to try to restrict Montanans’ access to our constitutionally-protected public lands, proposing changes to elk hunting rules to drive wildlife to privately-owned amenity ranches.
The legislature spent the 2021 session forcing through bills that weakened Montanans’ constitutionally-guaranteed right to vote– the latest effort of which was turned back earlier this month for being unconstitutional
(For those keeping track at home, defending these unconstitutional bills in court is costing Montana taxpayers over $120,000 in legal costs to defend.)
“The Montana constitution is an incredible document. The Montana GOP has made it crystal clear their intentions if given the opportunity,” says Executive Director of the Montana Democratic Party Sheila Hogan. “These attacks on our state Constitution should concern every Montanan.”
###