Montana Governor Greg Gianforte called in to the KGVO Montana Morning News show on Wednesday to give an update on his first full year in office, and also answered questions from listeners.
Gianforte addressed the Canadian truckers protest over mandatory vaccine mandates for all truck drivers, something the legislature in Montana has already prohibited.
“I’m in pretty regular dialogue with the premier of Alberta, Jason Kenney,” said Governor Gianforte. “I had a chance to sit down with him face to face last week, and we talked specifically about this, and how we might bring pressure to bear on both the Biden administration and the Trudeau administration. I then reached out to a number of other regional governors here in the area, and we’ve been discussing next steps.”
Gianforte said Canadian authorities, like those in this country need to have an overall change in COVID policies.
“Really we just need to change the policy,” he said “I’ve been very clear. I think that Montanans and Canadians know how to best protect themselves. These mandates don’t work. We should rely on personal responsibility. And a trucker sitting in a cab all by himself is no threat to himself or anybody.”
Here in Montana, Gianforte looked back at how his administration has eliminated mandates.
“Our freedoms are threatened by these mandate, and we sense it here,” he said. “I spent a good part of last year unwinding the mandates I inherited, such as getting rid of the mass mandate. We’ve been pushing back against this proposed OSHA rule. I’m pleased that we won at the US Supreme Court and that OSHA could not force larger employers to vaccinate older folks.”
Gianforte said he is working with the medical community to find a way to provide loopholes in the CMS mandate.
“We’ve been very clear, we have a CMS deadline coming up for Medicaid and Medicare recipients, our hospitals, that DPHHS last week under our direction, put out a religious exemption form that’s very straightforward…
