Monday 2/27 the House Energy, Technology, and Federal Relations Committee of the Montana House of Representatives passed H.B. 527, the Defend the Guard Act, and the bill will proceed to the House floor. This bill would prohibit the deployment of the Montana National Guard into overseas combat missions without a declaration of war by Congress as required by Article I, Section 8 of the United States Constitution. Rep. Lee Deming (R-District 55) is the lead sponsor of H.B. 527. A quarter of the Montana House of Representatives has joined him in co-sponsoring the Defend the Guard Act, including Rep. Casey Knudsen (R-District 33), Rep. Sherry Essmann (R-District 52), Rep. Braxton Mitchell (R-District 3), Rep. Paul Fielder (R-District 13), Rep. Sue Vinton (R-District 56), Rep. Lola Sheldon-Galloway (R-District 22), Rep. Mary Caferro (D-District 82), Rep. Jennifer Carlson (R-District 69), Rep. Jedediah Hinkle (R-District 67), Rep. Brandon Ler (R-District 35), Rep. Amy Regier (R-District 6), Rep. Ron Marshall (R-District 87), Rep. Joe Read (R-District 93), Rep. James Bergstrom (R-District 30), Rep. Brad Molnar (R-District 28), Rep. Tom McGillvray (R-District 23), Rep. Greg Kmetz (R-District 38), Rep. Jodee Etchart (R-District 48), Rep. Russ Miner (R-District 19), Rep. Bob Phalen (R-District 36), Rep. Lyn Hellegaard (R-District 97), Rep. Tanner Smith (R-District 11), Rep. Neil Duram (R-District 2), and Rep. Naarah Hastings (R-District 50). We demand a congressional declaration of war, as required by the Constitution, before the Montana National Guard be sent to fight in a foreign war. VOTE YES on HB527.

Please vote in favor of HB527- Defend The Guard. As Montanans we must act. We cannot participate in the Washington DC war machine. We do not believe believe the President can/should send the military to fight anywhere at anytime that he chooses, and we respect the Constitution that defines CONGRESS as the only body with the authority to declare war. I support the Constitution. I support the Montana National Guard. I support HB527 and I am asking you to support it too. Defend The Montana Guard. Vote YES on HB527.

Please support HB527. The Montana National Guard should not be deployed to overseas wars that have not been declared by Congress. Defend The Guard is constitutional and I am asking you to vote yes. Montanans and veterans support the bill passing through the committee. Do you believe that the President should be able to wage war without Congress declaring it? I don't. We must fight and keep our nation from becoming like other war empires throughout history. If war is inevitable, then send us to fight. But send us with the proper authority. Send us with a Congressional Declaration of War and demonstrate the will of the people! And then let us go and fight with a clear mission, let us WIN, and then let us come home. Vote YES on HB527

FInally! This bill is simple...follow the Constitution's road map for committing America and Montana citizens to war BEFORE we go to war. Such a simple bill with clear language. Please support HB527. The men and women in uniform are worthy of the correct process that sends them into war. The will and support of the people, through their representatives in Congress, must declare war before we put another boot on the ground in a foreign nation. Vote YES for HB527.

Please vote yes for HB527. We support our troops. We love the Montana National Guard. We believe in the clear language of the US Constitution. Vote yes on HB527.

It has never been more important. Congress must reclaim their authority of issues of war and peace. The president cannot be allowed to take our country into another endless and undeclared war. The world is a tinderbox ready to ignite. The Montana National Guard can and should fight America's wars and defend our nation against all enemies. Let's give them the proper authority. Let's put OUR names behind any war effort by asking our representatives in Congress to vote or reject war. That is the way the Founding Fathers intended it to be. Montana is leading the country. This is a good bill. Vote yes on HB527.

Not the president. Not the DoD. Not the career administrative state. CONGRESS! Congress should put their name on a Declaration of War and then defend that action with their constituents before they send our sons and daughters to fight and die half-way around the world. Pass Defend The Guard. Vote yes for HB527.

This is simple...Congress has the authority to declare war. That is a very somber responsibility that they have abdicated for 80 years. Congress hasn't declared war since 1942. Since that time, Presidents from both parties have taken young American men and women into nations around the world to fight endless wars with no clear mission or purpose. Generals have failed and never been held accountable. Congress refuses to do their job and the cost is American lives and treasure. The Generals rotate through the theater of operations in these endless wars and they bring a new vision, new strategy, new tactics...but they all deliver the same results. They lie about their successes and cover up their failures. The Afghanistan Papers proved those failures and pointed the finger at Congress for not maintaining their control and authority over war. Generals are never called before powerful committees to answer for successes or failures and progress reports are shaded with inflated successes. Congress must do their job...their most important job...before the US Military deploys on foreign misadventures of the Presidents choosing. Montana must force Congress to do their job. Vote YES on HB527. We demand it.

The State of Montana must stand up. The federal government has abandoned us. Our private property is under an invasion. Our safety is in jeopardy. Our rule of law is ignored. And the Federal government is doing nothing. The Montana National Guard has a Constitutional duty to do three things; 1) Enforce the laws of the union, 2) Put down an insurrection, and 3) Repel and invasion. A declaration of war from Congress that is signed by the president becomes the "law of the union" and the National Guard should then go and fight and win. Without a declaration of war, the Montana National Guard should be HERE defending our nation and our State. The Montana National Guard deserves our very best because we demand their very best. They deserve the full support and authority of the United States before they are asked to risk their lives and American treasure in overseas wars of choice. Pass Defend The Guard. This is the easiest concept to understand with even a limited understanding of Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution. This one is EASY. Vote YES on HB527.