Matthew Brown, Author at The Rapid City Post

Protester carries an upside down American flag during a protest against U.S. strikes on Iran, Sunday, June 22, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Olga Fedorova)

Americans react to US strikes on Iran with worry as well as support for Israel

June 24, 2025

Across the U.S. Americans are expressing a mixture of support, apprehension and anxiety over President Donald Trump’s decision to bomb nuclear sites in Iran. Administration officials say the strikes give Iran the chance to return to negotiations over its nuclear program. Yet if the conflict spirals, it could test Trump’s foreign diplomacy skills and his support at home. At Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, the B-2 bombers that participated in the weekend strikes returned home on Sunday. Nearby retired Air Force veteran Ken Slabaugh said he was “100% supportive” of Trump’s decision.

FILE - A firefighter carries a drip torch as he ignites a backfire against the Hughes Fire burning along a hillside in Castaic, Calif., Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

Trump moves to merge wildland firefighting into single force, despite ex-officials warning of chaos

June 12, 2025

President Donald Trump has told government agencies to consolidate their wildland firefighting into a single program. Thursday’s executive order comes after former federal officials warned that such a consolidation could be costly and increase the risk of catastrophic blazes. The move is meant to centralize duties now split among five agencies and two Cabinet departments. Officials have not disclosed how much the change could cost. The Trump administration in its first months sharply reduced the ranks of firefighters through layoffs and retirement offers. The personnel declines and reshuffling of agencies come as global warming makes fires more severe and destructive.

FILE - A view of the suburbs of Las Vegas from atop the Stratosphere tower looking west down Sahara Ave., towards the Spring Mountains, Feb. 9, 2005. (AP Photo/Joe Cavaretta, File)

Utah Republican proposes sale of more than 2 million acres of US lands

June 12, 2025

More than 2 million acres of federal lands would be sold to states or other entities under a budget proposal from Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee. The draft provision in the GOP’s sweeping tax cut package comes after after a similar proposal was narrowly defeated in the House. Montana Sen. Steve Daines said in response that he opposes public land sales. Lee says the sales would target isolated parcels that could be used for housing or infrastructure. Conservation groups reacted with outrage, saying it would set a precedent to fast-track the handover of cherished lands to developers.

FILE - A sign is set up ahead of President Joe Biden's visit to the Chuckwalla National Monument, Jan. 7, 2025, to the Coachella Valley, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

US Justice Department says Trump can cancel national monuments that protect landscapes

June 10, 2025

Lawyers for President Donald Trump’s administration say he has the authority to abolish national monuments meant to protect historical and archaeological sites. That includes two monuments in California created by former President Joe Biden at the request of Native American tribes. A Justice Department legal opinion released Tuesday disavowed a 1938 determination that monuments created by previous president can’t be revoked. The finding comes as the Interior Department under Trump has been weighing changes to monuments across the nation as part of the administration’s push to expand U.S. energy production.

Trump plans to merge wildland firefighting efforts into one agency, but ex-officials warn of chaos

May 20, 2025

President Donald Trump’s administration is trying to merge the government’s wildland firefighting efforts into a single agency. Some former federal officials warn the change could sow chaos and increase the risk of catastrophic blazes with fire season already underway. Trump’s budget would centralize firefighting efforts now split among five agencies into a single Federal Wildland Fire Service under the U.S. Interior Department. The Trump administration in its first months sharply reduced the ranks of firefighters through layoffs and retirement offers. The personnel declines and reshuffling of agencies come as global makes fires more severe and destructive.

A dirt road in Sweet Grass County leading into the Crazy Mountains is seen Saturday, May 10, 2025, near Big Timber, Mont. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)

National Guard helicopter crew landed on Montana ranch and trespassed to take antlers, citations say

May 16, 2025

Three Montana Army National Guard members face trespassing charges after authorities say they landed a Black Hawk helicopter in a mountain pasture on a private ranch to take elk antlers before flying away. A sheriff says Thursday that a game warden tracked down the guardsmen and they turned over two antlers and an elk skull with antlers attached. Authorities say a witness saw the May 4 landing and the property owner later reported it to officials. Elk antlers grow and drop off male animals annually and can be sold and collected. A Montana National Guard official says the case is under investigation and that misuse of military equipment erodes trust with residents.

FILE - Respiratory therapist Vernon Johnson, left, conducts a pulmonary test at the Center for Asbestos Related Disease, Thursday, April 4, 2024, in Libby, Mont. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)

Asbestos clinic forced to close in Montana town where thousands have been sickened by dust

May 8, 2025

An asbestos screening clinic in a Montana town where thousands have been sickened dust from a nearby mine has been shuttered by local authorities. The move follows a Wednesday court order to seize the clinic’s assets in order to pay off a judgment to railroad BNSF. Courts in Montana have said BNSF contributed to the asbestos pollution in Libby when it brought contaminated material through town. But the railway prevailed in a 2023 lawsuit alleging the clinic fraudulently made some patients eligible for government benefits when it knew they were not sick. The railway says it’s owed $3 million.

Matthew Brown.

Americans react to US strikes on Iran with worry as well as support for Israel

Trump moves to merge wildland firefighting into single force, despite ex-officials warning of chaos

Utah Republican proposes sale of more than 2 million acres of US lands

US Justice Department says Trump can cancel national monuments that protect landscapes

Trump plans to merge wildland firefighting efforts into one agency, but ex-officials warn of chaos

National Guard helicopter crew landed on Montana ranch and trespassed to take antlers, citations say

Asbestos clinic forced to close in Montana town where thousands have been sickened by dust

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