Viewpoint: Failure to protect – Montana’s missing delegation
Sneed Collard
The recent killing of US citizens by federal agents in Minnesota shines a glaring spotlight on how the Trump administration has not only failed to protect Americans, but has put us in greater jeopardy locally, nationally, and globally.
Unfortunately, it has taken these killings to highlight the free reign with which ICE—bolstered by tens of billions of dollars in new funding—has been pursuing its war of intimidation and terror on Americans who have been brave enough to disagree with Trump’s policies. These headlines, though, also obscure the hundreds of other ways this administration is making life less safe and more uncertain for all of us.
Economically, Trump administration policies have been a disaster for everyday Americans. Prices for life’s essentials continue to rise while Trump has cut basic food support for the swelling ranks of Americans who can’t afford to feed themselves. At the same time, he’s made sure that billionaires get even more write-offs and lower tax brackets so that they can continue to widen the economic gulf between themselves and the rest of us.
Trump’s weakening of America globally has been equally alarming. For decades, American prosperity has been made possible by the stable alliances the US has built with other nations. Now, all of that is out the window. Even before Trump’s insane threats to take over Greenland by force, other nations recognized that the US has essentially become a rogue nation, one that no other nations can depend on—unless, of course, they have something that our president desperately wants. Not only has Trump essentially turned his back on NATO and the Ukraine, he ignored China’s recent threatening military exercises aimed at intimidating our close ally, Taiwan. This sends a clear message to our enemies and rivals: Do what you want. We won’t lift a hand to stop you.
I could fill pages with other examples, but as Montanans, we should ask ourselves, “Where has Montana’s congressional delegation been through this chain of disasters?”
True to form, Montana’s representatives have mainly been looking out for their own interests. They have wholeheartedly endorsed the recklessness with which Trump is tearing our nation and values apart, and stayed silent on the outrages this administration is perpetrating here at home. Transfer more wealth to the rich? Sounds like a plan! Blow up Venezuelan boat people without due process? Sure, go ahead. Send poorly-trained, trigger-happy agents into Democratic cities? Excellent idea.
And what have Zinke, Daines, Sheehy, and Downing specifically said about the murders in Minnesota? In recent comments reported by NBC Montana, Sheehy basically blamed Minnesotans for protesting ICE’s heavy-handed tactics, and supported the false notion that the victims somehow “had it coming.” Daines issued a marshmallow statement that the killings should be investigated—but implied that this should in no way reduce ICE’s bloated budget or agenda of political intimidation.
But here’s the thing: we know that our reps can do the right thing, such as when they put their collective foot down on selling off public lands. Now, with razor-thin margins in Congress, they have the power to slow the spiraling descent of our nation’s trajectory. Call or email them and tell them to immediately—and publicly—voice their outrage to President Trump. Demand that they work with Democrats to curtail the wasteful, essentially limitless funding for ICE that is part of Trump’s Big Obscene Budget Bill.
A few weeks ago, I warned that the indiscriminate killing of Venezuelans set a dangerous precedent for killing US citizens, too. We are watching that happen now—and only our collective voices can stop it.
Sneed Collard is a writer from Missoula.