Way Back Wednesday: Daines’ History of Playing Politics with Public Lands 

Helena, MT – As the Great American Outdoors Act passes the Senate today, Steve Daines is trying to depict himself as a great public lands champion. But don’t be fooled — Daines is only pivoting on public lands as a blatantly political course correction now that his future in the Senate is uncertain. 

Yesterday, MDP launched dishonestdaines.com and a new digital ad which holds Daines accountable for his extensive record of playing politics with Montana’s public lands. 

As a reminder, during his time in Washington, Daines’ priorities have consistently been out of step with Montana’s way of life: 

• In 2015, Daines voted against a measure to permanently reauthorize LWCF.  
• Daines voted for a measure to pull back $16 million from the LWCF in 2018.  
• Daines has championed  anti-public lands Trump appointees, including William Perry Pendley, who “has argued for selling off almost all public lands.” 
• Daines was criticized for “hold[ing] up” a bipartisan win for Montana’s public lands by refusing to co-sponsor the Yellowstone Gateway Protection Act for more than a year and a half despite overwhelming public approval. 
• Daines spearheaded an effort to strip protections from hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands, which critics said would have constituted the “single biggest rollback of protected public lands in Montana history” and when sportsmen groups rightfully called him out on these attacks, Daines reportedly smeared them as “green decoys.”

“During his time in Washington, DC, Steve Daines has shown he’s only interested in standing up for Montana’s public lands when it serves his political career,” said MDP Communications Advisor Christina Wilkes. “Montanans deserve a Senator who fights for their way of life all the time, not just in an election year.”