Wildlife and People

Montanans Object to Tactics Used to Suppress HJ 26

News Release - DecideToVote.com, 27 Feb 2009

MISSOULA - Citizens across Montana are placing 30-second radio spots today in protest over handling of House Joint Resolution 26 by the Montana House of Representatives. Prepared ads criticize Democrat leadership in the House for attempting to violate House rules by denying a public hearing on HJ 26. Ads also criticize House Democrats for voting against HJ 26 on a party-line vote.

HJ 26 reasserts Montana sovereignty reserved to the state in Article II, Section 2 of the Montana Constitution, and in the Ninth and Tenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. In that regard, HJ 26 is similar to measures that are currently working in the legislatures of nearly 30 states across the U.S. Perhaps the first of these to be introduced was in New Hampshire, although the Oklahoma House of Representatives just passed a similar measure by a substantial vote margin.

In Montana, citizens are concerned about a possible move by Congress to cut off highway funds unless Montana caves in and accepts the federal Real ID, an idea rejected unanimously by the 2007 Montana Legislature and Governor Schweitzer. Montanans are also concerned about a likely wave of new gun control laws being proposed in Congress. One such proposed law, H.R. 45, would, if passed, make any person possessing a firearm a federal felon unless that person applied for and obtained a federal license to possess firearms. Montanans could not even apply for the required license because a Real ID is required to apply, and Montana has rejected Real ID.

HJ 26 addresses these issues and more. The radio spots that Montana citizens are placing across Montana are available from:

http://www.decide2vote.com/

This effort is distributed and not being organized by any particular organization, although several Montana organizations have picked up on the idea and are asking members and friends to place the ads locally with radio stations. People placing the ads want the public to know who is responsible for attempting to thwart the progress of HJ 26 in the Legislature.

Anyone with questions about this issue should look up HJ 26 on the Legislature’s Website and should contact their local legislators or their local radio station.

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Note: see Restoring the 10th Amendment [here]

A related news article:

Resolutions to affirm U.S. Constitution cause uproar

By Daniel Person, Bozeman Daily Chronicle Staff Writer, Feb 25, 2009 [here]

HELENA - Two resolutions to affirm the U.S. Constitution failed to get traction in the House this week, but they sure kicked up a lot of mud.

House Joint Resolution 26, sponsored by Rep. Michael More, R-Gallatin Gateway, and House Joint Resolution 24, sponsored by Rep. Joel Boniek, R-Livingston, would have gotten state representatives on the record opposing what the sponsors said were excesses of the federal government.

HJ24 sought to urge Congress to “adopt a constitutional, sustainable, and sound monetary system and cease further credit creation and borrowing.” HJ26 aimed to affirm states’ rights and condemn “encroachment of those rights by the federal government and executive orders.”

Resolutions do not carry the weight of law but stand as official statements by Montana’s elected bodies.

Both the resolutions had a tumultuous ride through the legislative process.

Introduced late in the process, Democratic Speaker of the House Bob Bergren first intended to “desk-veto” the measures, a maneuver in which the speaker does not assign a bill or resolution to a committee for a vote.

Last Friday, Bergren said he did not want to burden committees that were wrapping up their work with more legislation and hearings.

That drew fire from Republican leaders, who said all pieces of legislation deserve a hearing. In the face of Republican protest, Bergren scheduled a House Judiciary meeting for Monday afternoon.

With the full House scheduled to meet all day, the committee had little time to hear the resolutions, which brought into the Capitol passionate support from around the state. Emotions were high when people who had driven hundreds of miles to testify in favor of the resolutions were told to keep their testimony under two minutes.

After the hearings, the committee voted on party lines and tabled both resolutions.

More shared with the committee his frustration over the expedited hearings.

“I’m just amazed that we could not find some measure of forthright due process to address these issues,” he said.

Later that day, he was more terse when addressing Bergren on the House floor.

“I was, before coming here, an unrelenting idealist who thought what actually took place in this Capitol building would matter,” he said. “But you’ve removed the scales from my eyes. I don’t have a particularly good memory, but at times I have a long one, and can assure you the events of today shall not be forgotten, and I thank you, Mr. Speaker.”

On Tuesday, both Boniek and More attempted a parliamentary maneuver that would have allowed their resolutions to be discussed on the floor of the House, but both failed.

On Tuesday, Bergren said he offered the Republicans as much time as they wanted to hear the resolutions. They chose to give the measures [an] hour, he said.

“I really took offense to that (More’s speech),” he said. “It wasn’t my decision.”