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After a multi-year fight against former President Joe Biden’s energy, climate and environmental policies, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has corralled 18 other Republican attorneys general to back President Donald Trump and his energy policies.
Knudsen, who has led the Montana Department of Justice since 2021, is attempting to enter the judicial ring in a constitutional fight over three executive orders Trump issued earlier this year to “unleash America’s affordable and reliable energy and natural resources.” In May, 22 young Americans — including 10 involved in the Held v. Montana constitutional climate lawsuit the state Supreme Court decided in the plaintiffs’ favor late last year — filed a lawsuit to undo the executive orders.
The lead plaintiff is Eva Lighthiser, a 19-year-old Livingston resident. In May, Lighthiser said Trump is “waging war” on her and her co-plaintiffs, who are “fighting back with the Constitution.” More specifically, the plaintiffs argue in the 126-page lawsuit they filed in the U.S. District Court in Missoula that Trump is threatening their rights to life and liberty. They also invoke a separation-of-powers claim, a constitutional argument frequently cited in the hundreds of lawsuits that have arisen in response to Trump’s aggressive second-term agenda.
“President Trump’s EOs falsely claim an energy emergency, while the true emergency is that fossil fuel pollution is destroying the foundation of Plaintiffs’ lives,” Lighthiser and her co-plaintiffs contend in their request that judges toss the orders out. “Plaintiffs’ lives are presently harmed by the ‘unleashing’ of fossil fuel pollution, and their injuries will get worse as the directives continue to be implemented.”
In his motion to intervene, Knudsen argued that states like Montana are uniquely positioned to enter the legal arena to defend Trump’s energy agenda.
“The State of Montana has an interest in this case because it will directly impact the business done in the energy sector within its borders, as well as the employment implications and development implications involved that will impact so many of its citizens,” the filing reads. “Only the State Intervenors have the capacity, competency, and incentives to represent their unique interests not shared by the Federal Defendants.”
In a statement about Montana’s bid to join the litigation, Our Children’s Trust argued that fear is motivating the red states’ move to intervene. Over the last decade and a half, the Oregon-based nonprofit has filed dozens of lawsuits to force the government to act on climate change.
“Since President Trump returned to office, over 450 lawsuits have been filed challenging executive orders or the agency actions taken to carry them out. Out of all of those cases, only one has triggered a coalition of 19 states and a U.S. territory to intervene — this one. That speaks volumes,” Our Children’s Trust Chief Legal Counsel Julia Olson said in the press release. “Their intervention confirms what we already know: this constitutional rights case is vitally important, urgent, and it is exposing unlawful policies they are desperate to defend.”
Both sides would likely agree that the Treasure State is a fitting backdrop for a fight over energy development: Montana has an abundance of the types of resources — coal, natural gas, copper and rare earth elements — that the White House is set on extracting. (See “Public Comment,” below.)
—Amanda Eggert
Public Comment 🗣️
The Bureau of Land Management is taking comment on a proposal to reopen the Powder River Basin to coal leasing as part of President Donald Trump’s move to reverse his predecessor’s energy and climate policies.
The Powder River Basin, which spans southeastern Montana and northeastern Wyoming, holds the largest coal reserves in the United States. Some of the coal mined in the area is bound for U.S. power plants, while some is shipped overseas. Last May, former President Joe Biden announced that no new mines would be permitted in the area, citing the decline in coal production over the past two decades and the climate and public health impacts of continued coal burning. Burning coal to create electricity is a significant source of greenhouse gas, contributing to some of the largest releases of carbon dioxide in the country and the globe.
Environmental groups and ranchers wary of coal mining’s impact on water supplies, air quality and livestock forage celebrated the move by the Biden-era BLM. Mark Fix, a Miles City-area rancher and member of Northern Plains Resource Council, argued last year that it was about time the federal government started protecting taxpayers from “wasting publicly-owned resources on lowball leases to subsidize an industry in decline.” But the move irked statewide GOP politicians like U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, who said that it would weaken rural economies and destabilize the country’s electricity grid.
Now, the BLM is taking comment on the plan to open up 2,600 square miles — an area larger than Delaware — to new or expanded coal mines. In Montana, the area spans 17 counties, encompassing 2.7 million acres of BLM-administered land and 11.7 million acres of federal mineral estate.
The agency is accepting comments through Aug. 7. More specifically, the BLM is interested in hearing about the scope of the proposal, potential alternatives and any studies or relevant information that merit consideration.
The move came just days after Trump signed a massive budget bill that reduces the royalty rate for federal coal leasing from 12.5% to 7%, further unwinding Biden’s work to reshape the country’s energy landscape.
READ MORE: Trump administration weighs new coal sales from public land in Montana and Wyoming.
—Amanda Eggert
Verbatim 💬
“Are you guys detaining him separate from the traffic stop?”
“Yeah, he’s like getting deported.”
— An exchange between Helena Police Officer Seth Montgomery and an unnamed federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer recorded on body camera footage after officers pulled over Christopher Martinez Marvan on July 1 in Helena.
Police and ICE officers were searching for two Venezuelan men in the area when they stopped Martinez Marvan, a 31-year-old Helena resident and Mexican national. Officers determined he was not one of the men they were looking for, and Montgomery wrote up a citation for driving without a license. The footage shows that when Montgomery got out of his car with the ticket, federal officers were taking Martinez Marvan, who was ultimately detained in the Cascade County Detention Center in Great Falls.
During a hearing in federal district court in Missoula on Thursday, Martinez Marvan’s attorneys argued officers pulled him over because he was Latino and therefore similar in appearance to the men they were searching for, an action that made his detention unlawful. Molly Danahy, litigation director of Upper Seven Law, asked Judge Dana Christensen to order Martinez Marvan’s release and prevent evidence gathered during the stop from being used to immediately re-detain him.
Attorneys representing the government said Christensen does not have jurisdiction over the case, and it should move to immigration court. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Weldon said Martinez Marvan is not being detained illegally because he was driving a truck with an expired registration. Weldon also cited a warrant for arrest and notice to appear in immigration court that federal authorities submitted to Christensen’s court on Thursday.
Christensen has not ruled on the case as of early Friday afternoon.
—Katie Fairbanks
3 Questions
When Indian Health Service opened the Little Shell Tribal Health Clinic in Great Falls three years ago, Little Shell Chair Gerald Gray said it was the tribe’s plan to assume ownership one day. Indian Health Service (IHS) is the federal entity responsible for providing health care to federally recognized tribes. The agency is chronically underfunded, and tribes nationwide have long called for an improved care system. In Montana, Native Americans die about 17 years earlier than their white neighbors, and experts attribute that disparity, in part, to the overburdened IHS.
Tribes have the option to take control of some federally run programs, like health care, through a process commonly called “638.” Enacted in 1975, the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, Public Law 93-638, allows tribes to contract with the federal government to operate programs that serve tribal members.
The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes on the Flathead Reservation and the Chippewa Cree Tribe on the Rocky Boy’s Reservation have each assumed ownership of their health clinics through that process. Other tribes, like the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux, have taken control of some health care services.
Gray said in an interview with Montana Free Press that the 638 process was long and arduous. It requires years of clean tribal government financial audits and negotiations with IHS. But on July 1, the Little Shell Tribe officially took control of the health clinic, a move that Gray said “reflects our long-standing commitment to self-determination.”
We spoke with Gray about the significance of operating the clinic and what it will mean for the tribe and its members. Responses are edited for length and clarity.
MTFP: Why was assuming ownership of the clinic a goal for the tribe?
Gray: It all stemmed from a trip to Alaska, where we got to go visit the Southcentral Foundation, which is the health care for all [Alaska Native] villages. And they provide a system of care called Nuka. It’s more about the whole person, the whole body. The best way to describe it is if you go in to see a doctor and let’s say something is bothering your knee. A team will look at your chart and say, “You know, you also haven’t had your teeth cleaned in a while. Can we set you up with a dentist? And also you probably need to have this exam.” It’s all very preventative care. IHS doesn’t offer that. I just thought that would be much better for our citizens. And we just feel we know our citizens better and can provide that next level of care, preventative care instead of reactive care.
MTFP: What will this mean for patients and for clinic employees in the short- and long-term?
Gray: We haven’t fully implemented it yet, because it’s only been a week. But what they’ll see is there will be a team approach to care. Right now when you go in there, it’s pretty much the same until we get providers and staff trained in that system of care. … We’re also expanding the clinic because we did get some money from the state. We’re going to create a behavioral health and counseling room where you can do group sessions. I’m really excited about that. And once the Nuka system has been established, we’ll have iPads readily available for our citizens. They really are going to be customers. Without them, we wouldn’t have this. They’re not patients, they’re actually customer-owners. And when they come in, they’re going to be able to do a survey [on the iPad] so we can always be improving the system of care.
MTFP: Can you elaborate on that distinction between being treated like a patient versus being treated like a customer?
Gray: In the typical setting, if you go to the doctor, you’re a patient and you’re seen in a way where they try to see as many [patients] as they can so they can bill [for services]. A customer is someone who is much more appreciated, and we want to provide that whole care, that preventative care. Then you’re not going to have a whole bunch of sick citizens because you’re getting that care. It’s just a more respectful way to treat people.
—Nora Mabie
Highlights ☀️
In other news this week —
- NorthWestern Energy backed off its rate hike.
- Moderate Republican state senators are mad about being excluded from deciding party leadership and demanded a re-vote.
- What’s next for Holland Lake Lodge?
On Our Radar 
Tom — I turned to AI for advice on how to repair my old Honda’s driver’s side power window, which died in the down position during a rainy week. The instructions were detailed enough, though I’m ready for a roll-down model.
Holly — I had lived far too long without making this summer beverage, and nobody else should make my mistake. You don’t even need the ice cubes or the sweetener.
Zeke — Although Montana receives between 15 and 16 hours of daylight during the summer, the dark late-night hours of a warm July set an excellent scene for thrills, spooks and other assorted frights. During a nighttime drive between two distant towns, I enjoyed an audiobook rendition of Stephen King’s “Night Shift.”
Eric — This video blog, from Missoula YouTuber Hank Green, is probably the clearest metaphor I’ve heard anyone articulate explaining what feels wrong with the internet at the moment (TL;DW: It’s overrun by social media junk food).
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