Once a month Governor Greg Gianforte has committed to appearing on the KGVO Talk Back show to answer questions from listeners, and Thursday was the day.

The phone lines were full just after the Governor was introduced, and the first question dealt with his response to what is happening in Washington, D.C. and how he planned to protect the sovereignty of the state.

“We're seeing all this crazy stuff coming out of Washington D.C.,” said Gianforte. “This is why I was really pleased in this legislative session to sign the constitutional carry bill for the state. Just know that I'll always defend our Second Amendment rights. This is not gun related, but I signed a law yesterday to ban Sanctuary Cities. Here in the state of Montana, we have to enforce the rule of law and our Second Amendment is very clear. It says that we have the right to keep and bear arms that those rights shall not be infringed upon. I don't think there's a lot of confusion about that.”

One caller complained about rising property taxes, specifically in Missoula County, to which Gianforte said he will do what he can, but primarily it’s the citizens of Missoula County that choose their own property tax bills.

“The challenge is that most of the property tax stays local in your community, so it's the local county commissioners and the city council that are deciding how high your property taxes are,” he said. “Very little comes to the state. I share your concern that a lot of folks are concerned about property taxes. There are some things the state can do, but ultimately it's when all those mill levies come up for a vote on your local ballot you have to consider whether or not you're willing to pay higher taxes there locally.”

Another listener referenced the article on Real Clear Investigations about the alleged voter fraud in Missoula County.

“I spoke with Secretary of State Christi Jacobson the other day,” he said. “Ultimately, we have to have elections where we can rely on the results. I know she has been sponsoring a number of bills in the legislature. I look forward to signing them into law and that will make sure that we have accurate election results. I recently repealed the prior Governor's executive order that mandated all mail in ballots, so we're going to go back to polling places. I think it’s much easier to assure integrity when we do that.”

Gianforte also referenced another bill making its way through the legislature that will address the power granted to local health boards.

“We're unwinding these impractical government mandates that are there,” he said. “There’s also some legislation coming through that would change the reporting authority for local public health officials. I think there are some prudent things that could be done there to make sure they have oversight from elected officials and that they are not just operating on their own.”

Gianforte mentioned that following the call to KGVO he would be heading to a clinic in Helena to receive his first COVID 19 vaccine, and he encouraged everyone else to do the same.

 

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