Gianforte’s Capitol: Working people not welcome | Emily Marburger

Montana is a state rooted in fairness, equal rights and community. I'm willing to wager that the vast majority of Montanans deeply cherish their constitutional rights, like the First Amendment.

And yet, the First Amendment in Montana is under attack from the very people who claim to represent us. Gov. Greg Gianforte quietly decided that because he doesn’t spend time at the Capitol on the weekends, neither can the general public.

At Gianforte’s beck and call, state officials changed permitting rules to effectively ban weekend rallies at the People’s House that rely on basic equipment like sound systems — just weeks before the national “No Kings” protests scheduled on March 28. (There’s over 25 No Kings protests in Montana, find one near you!)

Weak Republican reasoning claims the ban is to save money. Truth is, Gianforte has a pot of unallocated money estimated to grow to more than $100 million by the end of 2026. He could use his slush fund to pay for rally costs and protect the First Amendment the same way he could have used it to fund SNAP when Montanans were going hungry last fall, but he won’t.

Let’s be honest about what this looks like: a government picking and choosing which voices get heard, and when.

State capitols have long been a gathering place for Americans. Montanans are no different — we have long gathered on the Capitol grounds to make our voices heard. Folks of all political stripes have come together in Helena for protests, ceremonies and public events for generations.

These events are usually held on the weekend, so that working people can actually attend. A Tuesday 2 p.m. event simply won’t work for most Montanans — we’ve got jobs, bills to pay and kids to feed. Working Montanans must always be a part of any political conversation, but with Gianforte’s ban, we’re being pushed to the margins.

It’s the governor’s latest pattern: restrict grassroots voices while amplifying outside political agendas. While shredding the First Amendment rights of working Montanans, he’s working to put a religious, alt-right, “free speech” organization into Montana schools. Injecting hyper-partisanship and indoctrination into our public schools is fine with Gianforte, but working Montanans gathering on the Capitol lawn is simply too much to bear.

The power lies with We the People. We love our country for free, to the point that we are demanding better. The Last Best Place still means something, but not if we don’t protect her from corrupt politicians consolidating power at the cost of our rights.

Montana deserves better than a government that fears its own people showing up on a Saturday.