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Articles written by Roger Koopman


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  • Guest Opinion: Why Do Politicians Lie?

    Roger Koopman, Bozeman|Updated Feb 9, 2022

    We've all heard the quip, "how do you know when a politician is lying?" Answer: His lips are moving. But there's another obvious question that begs an obvious answer. WHY do politicians lie? Answer: Because they can. The American media – or what could once be legitimately called the media – draws our attention every day to the lies they have caught their least-favored politicians saying. Often they are incredibly blatant. The furrowed brows on the left (CNN, MSNBC and the majo...

  • The Free Money Game: When Will Republicans Wise Up?

    Roger Koopman, Bozeman|Updated Mar 31, 2021

    Every election cycle, you can count on Republican candidates promising to reduce the size and cost of government, and in general, getting government out of our businesses and out of our daily lives. Yet as every session of the legislature demonstrates, that pledge – for the majority of Republican lawmakers – has a distinctly hollow ring. Not unlike their Democratic counterparts, the GOP’s commitment to controlling government and reducing welfare dependency is highly selective. For their friends, the free money game conti...

  • Op/Ed: The public takes a back seat to politics on the PSC

    Roger Koopman, District 3 Commissioner, Montana PSC|Updated Dec 4, 2019

    The Public Service Commission has always been a somewhat surly bunch. The PSC's devoted staff has often had to deal with varying degrees of political game-playing, deception, threats and intrigue. Sure. Politicians politic. The question is, at the end of the day, can elected officials bury their egos and ambitions long enough to put the people's business ahead of their own? Recent events would suggest that where the Montana PSC is concerned, the answer is "no." That might...