Governors see best of Montana

Whitefish and the Flathead Valley are used to being host to a variety of visitors in the summer months, but the meeting of the Western Governors’ Association this week has brought with it a plate full of news as well as a coffer full of tourist dollars.

Montana’s governor, Steve Bullock, is current chair of the organization, and thus got to select the site of the annual summer meeting. We know he had a variety of options for that choice, so we are grateful to him for selecting Whitefish and introducing his fellow governors to the best of Montana.

The meeting has made its share of news. On the convention’s opening day, Canadian provincial leaders and the Western governors shared their concerns about cross-border trade, especially regarding softwood lumber, a particularly sensitive topic in timber country. Nothing was resolved, of course, but at least the forum provided an opportunity for the key figures to talk to each other.

On the second day, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke returned to his hometown and made news on an issue of national importance. He let the audience know that his “likely recommendation” to President Trump would be to leave the Missouri River Breaks National Monument “as is.” That news will have a significant impact in the central part of the state.

The meeting wraps up this morning with a roundtable discussion featuring No Kid Hungry spokesman Jeff Bridges and Lisa Davis of Share our Strength, followed by a discussion on infrastructure in the West. Gov. Bullock didn’t put Whitefish on the map, but his decision to hold the meeting there certainly helped to raise our profile.