Newspapers & Antitrust Lawsuit

Missoulian: US antitrust lawsuit aims to block California newspaper sale
Justice Department Files Antitrust Lawsuit to Stop L.A. Times Publisher from Acquiring Competing Newspapers
“According to the department’s complaint, filed in federal district court in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Times and the Register together account for 98 percent of newspaper sales in Orange County and the Los Angeles Times and Freedom’s newspapers together account for 81 percent of English-language newspaper sales in Riverside County.  Tribune’s acquisition of its most significant competitor would give it a monopoly over newspaper sales in each county and allow it to increase subscription prices, raise advertising rates and invest less to maintain the quality of its newspapers.”

Winter Weather/ Child Abuse

Missoulian: Wintry weather reemerges in western Montana; roads wet and slick
Winter Weather Advisory

Missoulian: Commission: US lacks strategies to lower child abuse deaths

Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities
The Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities (CECANF) Released Its Final Report
“If we as a nation continue on our present course, an estimated 1,500 to 3,000 U.S. children will die from maltreatment next year,” noted Dr. David Sanders, Chairman. “Our current network of services and supports does not adequately ensure safety for children because much of it is reactionary after a death has occurred.”
Full report

Supreme Court Nomination/ Amtrak Accident

Missoulian: The Latest: Obama praises Merrick Garland for high court
President Obama’s Supreme Court Nomination
“He currently serves as Chief Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C., a court to which he was confirmed with majority support from both parties in the U.S. Senate in 1997. Now presiding as Chief Judge, Judge Garland has more federal judicial experience than any Supreme Court nominee in history.”

Missoulian: NTSB says feed truck shifted track before Amtrak accident
NTSB to Provide Update for Amtrak Derailment in Kansas
“The National Transportation Safety Board is scheduled to provide an update this afternoon about its investigation of an Amtrak train derailment near here (Cimarron, Kan) Monday.”

Genocide in Syria

Missoulian: House passes resolution condemning IS atrocities as genocide
H.Con.Res.121 - Expressing the sense of the Congress condemning the gross violations of international law amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Government of Syria, its allies, and other parties to the conflict in Syria, and asking the President to direct his Ambassador at the United Nations to promote the establishment of a war crimes tribunal where these crimes could be addressed.

Montana Campaign Finance Laws

Missoulian: Court decision puts candidate contribution limits at risk
Ninth Circuit Court Opinion on Contribution Limits
Finally, we find that the public interest is closely aligned with the irreparable harm shown by the State of Montana. The people comprising the State of Montana have a deep interest in fair elections. See United States v. Gradwell, 243 U.S. 476, 480 (1917) (“[T]he people of the United States . . . have an interest in and a right to honest and fair elections . . . .”). The Montana contribution limit statute has long stood, not only to prevent corruption, see Eddleman, 343 F.3d at 1092–93, but also to create an background of fairness to allow candidates to plan their campaigns and implement their strategies upon the foundation of well-laid and understood groundrules. Given the deep public interest in honest and fair elections and the numerous available options for the interested parties to continue to vigorously participate in the election, the balance of interests falls resoundingly in favor of the public interest.