Montana's AWOL Guv Refuses To Say Where He Is As State Fights 500-Year Floods

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, whose catchphrase is “leading Montana’s comeback,” may finally be coming back to Montana.

The Republican governor, elected in 2020, spent the past working week in Tuscany, Italy, as his voters battled some of the worst flooding in state history, 8KPAX reports. Now, after at least four days away on a ‘personal’ trip, Gianforte’s office has confirmed that the governor is expected back in the capital Helena sometime Thursday evening.

For Gianforte, however, the damage may already be done.

Montanans were kept in the dark about his whereabouts for days, warned only of his absence — not just from Montana, but the entire continent — when reporters noticed that an executive order declaring a disaster was signed Monday by Lieutenant Governor Kristen Juras and not by Lieutenant Governor Kristen Juras. Gianforte himself. The governor was also absent from all official briefings about the floods.

Gianforte’s office later told the… Helena Independent Record that the governor has “verbally approved” the disaster declaration and authorized Juras to act on his behalf.

Floods in Yellowstone have destroyed roads and homes.

National Park Service

Meanwhile, devastating floods washed away dozens of bridges and miles of roads in Yellowstone National Park, which lies partly in Montana, forcing 10,000 visitors to leave the indefinitely closed park on Monday.

Those floods made their way downriver and continue to devastate the lives of Montanans, 87 of whom were rescued from the floodwaters by the National Guard.

The floods also caused extensive damage to the riverfront. High waters caused the water treatment plant in Billings, the state’s most populous city, to be closed earlier this week, forcing officials to beg residents to save water. After only a day’s supply was available on Thursday morning, the factory was able to start up again. But the threat of flooding elsewhere remains.

“None of us planned a 500-year flood on the Yellowstone when we designed these facilities,” Debi Meling, Billings director of public works, told the Associated Press.

Gianforte’s office admitted on Wednesday that the state leader was out of the country on a “personal trip”, but withheld his exact location for “security reasons”.

Gianforte’s silence has led critics to portray him as the new “Cancún Cruz,” a reference to Texas Senator Ted Cruz’s foray to Mexico last year when his home state froze amid deadly power cuts and freezing temperatures.

“Greg Gianforte pulled a Ted Cruz and is out of the country on vacation as Montana blunders its response to massive flooding,” tweeted Raw Story reporter Bob Bringham from Bozeman, Montana.

But comparing Cruz to Gianforte is not apples to apples. First, Gianforte has failed to provide an explanation for his sojourn in Europe, while Cruz tried too late to portray his untimely escape as an act of fatherhood, accompanying his daughter to Mexico before returning the following day. Cruz also booked his flights because Texas was in crisis, while Gianforte’s outing — his second in two weeks — was planned in advance, his office said.

This isn’t the first time Gianforte has made national headlines for the wrong reasons. He once hit a reporter on the campaign trail for a seat in Congress in 2017. Three years later, when he was running for governor, his political director and spokesperson allegedly beat up a parked car next to his pickup truck, killing him. had slammed the door of his truck against the wall. other vehicle.

Gianforte’s office on Thursday did not respond to multiple calls, emails and direct messages from The Daily Beast about when his Italian vacation started and why he had to go home so long.

Newsy reporter Maritsa Georgiou says she was given a time-stamped photo showing the governor in Italy’s wine country. However, the photo itself has not been released by Georgiou.

Others in the state heard similar rumors about Gianforte’s whereabouts. Former Democrat Representative Reilly Neill, who became governor in 2020, said on Thursday she heard from three people that Gianforte was on vacation in Italy, but the trio wished to remain anonymous.

Neill declined a phone interview with The Daily Beast on Thursday, saying she would soon lose cell service if she drove to the areas around Yellowstone. With Gianforte’s return seemingly imminent, he may soon do the same.

Montana’s AWOL Guv Refuses To Say Where He Is As State Fights 500-Year Floods