Montana politics, elections and legislative news

News Orgs File Suit Over Republican Caucus Meeting

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Montana Capitol. (Photo by Jacob Baynham, Community News Service, UM School of Journalism.)
Jacob Baynham

Republicans in the Montana House face a contempt-of-court motion filed by Montana news media, for allegedly holding a caucus meeting without public notice.

Last week Great Falls Tribune reporter John S. Adams got a tip: House Republicans were meeting behind closed doors. As soon as Adams walked into the room, the discussion stopped cold.

Adams said, “I think there was even one of those motions of the finger across the neck, like cut! Cut!"

Adams counted fifty house members discussing their legislative goals for 2015. Thursday more than twenty media organizations asked a court to declare the House Republicans in contempt of a ruling that caucus meetings must be announced in advance.

Majority leader Keith Regier did not respond a request for comment. He told the Tribune “As far as notifying the press, that was neglect on my part”.

Watch a video of the Republican caucus meeting from The Helena Vigilante below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fThSuEyQF6k

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