Good morning; on the Beacon today, after being rescued May 27 from a Columbia Falls pasture, 17 horses are growing accustomed to their new home at the Flathead County Fairgrounds. Mirroring several of its neighbors in northwest Montana, Flathead County has one of the highest yearly dropout rates in the state. Now in its second session of the year, Mountain Physical Therapy and Fitness’ four-week-long Bikini Boot Camp aims to ready its participants for the summer season. Mick Holien muses on how this year’s Football Championship Subdivision playoffs could be different from previous years. And Dave Skinner is skeptical of a recent land acquisition by the state Land Board.
Republicans emerged Wednesday from a rowdy and crowded primary season that saw GOP voters backing roughly half of the candidates favored by hardline conservative activists. U.S. Sen. Jon Tester has dismissed a proposed rewrite of his forest bill as “dead on arrival,” and promised to publicly post his counteroffer that is expected next week. New claims for jobless benefits fell for the third straight week but remain elevated, suggesting the labor market is still sluggish. U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg swept all 56 counties en route to his victory in a three-way Republican congressional primary Tuesday, while Dennis McDonald won all but two counties to lead the four-candidate Democratic field. The former Montana secretary of state seeking a new position regulating utilities is checking into rehab – but he’s not conceding defeat. In the marquee race on the primary ballot Tuesday, more than twice as many people voted in the Republican race for the U.S. House than in the Democratic primary. With fights over conservative purity settled, Republican activist groups like the Tea Party and others are split over backing moderate GOP candidates or sitting out the general election. Glacier National Park ranger Scott Emmerich has been honored for his accomplishments over his 21-year career with the National Park Service.