Whitehall Indivisible: Back at in 2026

Whitehall Indivisible (WI) has resumed its 6 PM meetings on Thursdays in the Whitehall School library.

This month, WI has two guest speakers: On January 15, candidate for US House District 2 Brian Miller will share a presentation with Q&A, and on January 29, Montana HD 69 candidate Trevor Walter will discuss his campaign and ideas for change. Both speakers are at 6 PM on Thursdays.

This week, we reunited after the holiday break and kicked off the meeting with a video featuring Russian chess master and Putin critic Gary Kasparov, who stated that although Ukraine is not a NATO member, it is doing the work that NATO was created to do: keeping Russia at bay.

At the federal level, we touched on January 6 remembrance ceremonies and the remaining potential legal battles to hold those responsible for their actions accountable. We reviewed Venezuela dictator-snatching vs Honduras drug-lord presidential pardons in the context of difficult-to-process heavy crude oil, along with Greenland threats, missed Epstein deadlines, and the video-taped fatal shooting of a Minnesota citizen and the administration’s creative response.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting no longer exists; the US has withdrawn from over 60 climate-related agreements and groups; and Trump has suggested putting his face on a dollar bill.

A little closer to home, Ryan Busse has entered the race as a candidate for US House District 1, running against Russel Cleveland and Matt Rains for the Democratic seat against incumbent Rep Ryan Zinke. Whitehall residents are in District 2, so this is not a race locals can vote in.

The Transparent Election ballot initiative was ruled invalid by the Montana Supreme Court because, as submitted, it included multiple issues rather than a single issue. The TEI people replied with two separate ballot initiatives that together say the same thing: corporations do not have the state-given power to make political donations. The newly worded initiatives will need to restart the approval process from the beginning.

Two other ballot initiatives have been approved to keep Montana’s Supreme Court, district courts, and judicial elections nonpartisan. Signature gathering efforts have begun.

The Montana PBS program “Montana Impact” airs Thursday evenings and on PBS Passport. “Montana Impact” often features segments that closely parallel our group’s discussions. Most recently, there was a segment on the Montacore Mine in Libby that is in the adjusted fast-track process, one of our topics to watch.

As part of our effort to maintain a list of pro-democracy groups locally and nationally, we discussed “More Perfect Union,” a pro-democracy group that focuses on working-class issues, and two groups that specifically bring lawsuits against the law-breaking instances of the current administration: Democracy Defenders (Norm Eisen) and Democracy Forward (Marc Elias).

No one had any 2026 Resolutions to reduce candy intake, which was a relief to the organizers. We will continue to have candy, conversation, and a focus on the rule of law, or lack thereof, in this democratic republic. Everyone is welcome, and we hope to see you.