If you can’t prove them wrong, create a distraction. That seems to be the government playbook in Butte and around the country.

In this episode, Erik and Bill start off agitated by the rumors being spread that they said a recently-hired Butte firefighter was not qualified for the job. They were accused of saying he only got the job because his uncle is a member of the Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners.

Well, nothing could be further from the truth. Erik and Bill have done nothing but praise firefighters — paid and volunteer. The brave men and women who sign up to go into a burning building to save lives are nothing but heroes, and Erik and Bill would never profess to be experts on the hiring qualifications of those heroes.

They figure that the rumor dates to an episode earlier this year when Trudy Healy mentioned an ethics complaint she made against fellow commissioner Josh O’Neill because he did not disclose a conflict of interest while chairing the Fire Advisory Board. There was no mention of nepotism or qualifications in the complaint, and Erik and Bill had nothing to do with it.

You can read the complaint at MadAboutMontana.com.

The rumor is nothing more than a distraction to take away from the fact that our local government recently poisoned our water. It is a distraction so we might not notice that our chief executive lobbied the United States Department of Urban Development to raise — yes raise — the acceptable lead standards for affordable housing.

Distractions are also been used by dark-money groups to attack citizens over the Bozeman Water Adequacy Ballot Initiative

Well, Erik and Bill are not falling for it, and neither should you.

Is our local government in Butte-Silver Bow lying about the latest water disaster that shook the community in August? Is it really being transparent when it comes to data centers planned for the Mining City?

The answers to those questions are “yes,” “no,” and “whichwater crisis are you referring to?”

Anonymous whistleblowers alerted the Mad About MontanaPodcast to the fact that Butte-Silver Bow’s response to the report of possible contamination from Montana Resources to the public drinking water actually made the problem worse. They also said that the imaginary dividing line of FrontStreet was just that. Imaginary.

The five dividing valves that would have separated the water from downtown to uptown are on Aluminum Street. So, those who live and work in the blocks between Front and Aluminum were given a false sense of security while the Montana Department of Environmental Quality and Butte-Silver Bow pretended to solve the problem by handing out bottles of water.

The whistleblowers will remain anonymous because Butte Silver Bow has a long — and recent history — of retaliating against anyone willing to blow a whistle.

This episode also dives into plans for data centers in Butte and the insane amount of water it will take to run them. These plans, by the way, were made with little to know public input, and anyone who asks questions only gets chastised by the Council of Commissioners.

The Montana Environmental Information Center will hold adiscussion, which will be moderated by Erik Nylund with the Mad About Montana Podcast, at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Montana Tech Copper Lounge.

The super-rich run the Yellowstone Club, and they have taken over the Crazy Mountains and Flathead Lake.

Could Virginia City and Nevada City be next?

Well, Mark Savinski sure thinks so. Our legislature and governor are primed to giveaway an authentic slice of the American West to turn it into yet another playground for the super-rich. The only use for the working class of Montana will be to serve the billionaires as they destroy Virginia City andNevada City.

Of course, there has not been much — if anything — said in the media. So, we invited Mark to the Bagger Vance studio — if that is what it is called — to talk about what is going on that special slice of Montana he loves so much.

This is a story that needs to be made public before it is too late. Call your legislators and tell them to do whatever they can to stop it. Tell your neighbors and friends. Tell everyone. As it is, Virginia City and Nevada City are a places where you can take your family and not break the bank. If the billionaires take over, that will be as dead as the gunfighters in Boot Hill.

So, please, speak up so we do not lose even more of our heritage and our history.

Russell Cleveland is a Navy veteran who played football for Coach Bob Green at Montana Tech. He is currently the defensive coordinator for the St. Regis Tigers football team.

Russ grew up in Stevensville, and was a part of some great football teams there. After starting a successful business in Colorado, Russ moved back to Montana with his wife, Dr. Kate Cleveland, and their six children.

Russ is a descendant of Grover Cleveland, the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. He bills himself as a moderate — he refuses to wear a red or blue tie — who is running on the platform of youth development, affordability, stewardship, public health, and financial reform.

When he isn’t helping the Tigers win football games, Russ has been traveling around Western Montana talking to voters and hearing about the issues that are important to them.

On Wednesday, his travels brought him to the Bagger Vance Studio to talk about his campaign and why he is running. It should be noted that we learned of the horrible assassination of Charlie Kirk while we were talking, and Russ, without hesitation, Russ quickly condemned any and all political violence.

Click here for more on Russ.

Mike Jopek threw his hat in the ring to become the char of the Montana Democratic Party. The Flathead County Garlic farmer will square off against Missoula’s Shannon O’Brien as the party convenes for its convention this weekend in Livingston.

Mike is looking to return the party to the playbook of Jon Tester and Brian Schweitzer. He wants to use the 56-county approach to help Democrats start winning elections in Montana once again. As it is with Democrats from Missoula and Bozeman calling the shots, Mike says the party is losing rural Democrats, and they have long been the staple of the party of the people.

Mike, a former Montana legislator, wants to end the system where candidates are coronated by the party elites. He wants to see primaries that will strengthen candidates for the general election. He says candidates who win primaries are candidates who win elections.

This is Mike’s second appearance on the Mad About Montana podcast. He made an appearance in April as he fought for real property tax reform.

Since they have spent so much time complaining, Erik and Bill decided to drive on the wet highway to Helena Thursday to talk about a solution.

That is where they found Jeff Mangan, the leader of The Montana Plan. Also known as the Transparent Election Initiative, The Montana Plan is a ballot initiative aimed at making the Citizens United Decision irrelevant and getting rid of dark money in Montana elections. Mangan is a former Montana legislator and Commissioner of Political Practices. He has been working on the Montana Project for about a year with the hope of getting it on the ballot in November of 2026.

The Montana Plan uses the state’s authority to define what powers corporations get and stops giving them the power to spend in Montana elections. It is not a partisan issue. It is not about red and blue. Rather, it is about green.

We are all tired of the endless election ads and smear campaigns that have defined politics in Montana and around the nation. We are tired of the commercials and the endless supply of election junk mail. The Montana Plan could be the solution to that headache and help us take our state back from out-of-state and even overseas corporations.

Listen in as Jeff talks about the whys and the hows of the plan and how you can join the fight by going to TheMontanaPlan.com. Listen in to hear why he is so confident that the Transparent Election Initiative will make it to the ballot and be passed by the voters of the Treasure State.

The people of Butte, America are pointing fingers and fighting with each other about the latest water disaster. This time, water from Montana Resources might have accidentally contaminated the potable water supply in the Mining City.

People are scared and angry, and they want answers. Erik and Bill suggest that those fingers should be pointed at Helena. They suggest that the Department of Environmental Quality and Gov. Greg Gianforte dropped the ball with their reckless deregulation campaign.

Where is Gianforte in this crisis? Where are Sen. Tim Sheehy and Sen. Steve Daines? Where is Rep. Ryan Zinke? Their silence on this matter is deafening.

Instead of pointing a finger and laughing at the Mining City and getting ready to chant “Dirty water” at the Bulldogs and Maroons, the rest of the state should be paying attention, too. If the DEQ can drop the ball when it comes to our drinking water, their water could be contaminated, too. Maybe it already has.

In the meantime, Erik and Bill suggest that we all chill out a little bit. They recommend catching a little comedy to help do that. Namely, they suggest you go see Sam Miller’s show Friday night at the Covellite Theater. Check out Uptown Comedy for more information.

The Mad About Montana Podcast took a road trip the StateCapitol Monday for an important conversation with Sheena Pesanti and Bert Tabor.

Pesanti, a Butte native, has been involved in a well-publicized fight to see her two children. She says the courts in Montana illegally stripped her of custody after her divorce. Sheena has not seen those children in a year and a half, and she says she has PSTD from the abuse she has received in court.

Sheena’s fight is the subject of a soon-to-be-released documentary, “Purpose In Pain: The Sheena Pesanti Story.” The movie documents Sheena’s journey and the lengths a mother will go to for a chance to be reunited with her children.

On Monday, Sheena visited Gov. Greg Gianforte’s office in her on going quest to have a face-to-face discussion with the governor. Again, she was denied the chance to talk with Gianforte or even schedule a meeting with him.

Sheena is traveling with Bert Tabor, a charismatic and passionate mover and shaker from Las Vegas. He is credited as being the man who brought the Raiders to Sin City. Together, Bert and Sheena have removed the gloves as they fight for her right to see her children. We discuss a few possible reforms to money and partisanship in court elections to start the change process.

Listen in to hear Sheena tell her story and see that she is absolutely fearless in her quest for justice. Listen as she talks about her plans to run for Governor in 2028. Listen as she says that might not be her last stop as she climbs the political later.

Listen in to hear the Sheena has an ally who will never back down in Mr. Tabor.

It was a Saturday night counseling session at the Bagger Vance Studio for Erik, and Bill is no Dr. Buddy Rydell.

Erik’s anger reached a boiling point as he talks about the hurt feelings of some so-called Montana Democrats, or the “Missoula Minions,” and no amount of Goosefraba could calm that fire in his belly as he watches his party continue to walk away from him.

When did they get away from kitchen table issues? When did they forget the real meaning of the term “bi-partisan?” How can they write off 132,000 poor Montanans getting kicked off Medicaid as an “administrative error?”

When did they stop fighting for the little man?

How can some Democrats claim victory as Montanans see their property taxes and property appraisals go through the roof? How can they “talk down” to the people and tell them the property tax scheme is somehow a good thing?

In this episode, Erik and Bill do not have the answers to thosequestions. They can only say that the people need to get involved to hold their representatives accountable. We must demand that we get rid of dark money and get a handle on the lobbyists who seem to be running the show in Helena.

We need to demand that the Montana Democratic Party regain its backbone and once again become the “Party of the People.”

In 2024, Steve Held ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in Montana’s 2nd Congressional District.

He is a fourth-generation Montanan who grew up in Broadus, in the south east corner of the state. While he ran as a Democrat, and will likely do the same for another office soon (at least we hope he does), Steve realizes that he is not that much different than his fellow ranchers who vote Republican. He realizes he can talk with people who identify as MAGA and find some common ground.

Whether we are talking about the environment, gender-neutral restrooms or the importance of agriculture in the Treasure State, Steve reminds us that the wants and the needs of the people are pretty much the same. Themedia, lobbyists and dark money, however, work to drive us apart.

Oh, and Steve is also an actor. His list of credits includesPatriot Games, Dallas, L.A. Law and Baywatch.

Listen in as Steve talks about the need for Montanans totalk to each other instead of playing the partisan games. Listen as Erik tries to recover after hearing Steve tell a story about an encounter with Pamela Anderson.

(Note:this episode is marked explicit because a few necessary f-bombs.)