Montana Congressmen Oppose Senate GOP Bill Including Public Land Sales

President Donald Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill,' a sweeping GOP budget and tax legislation, faces significant opposition within his own party due to a contentious provision pushed by Senator Mike Lee proposing the sale of millions of acres of federal public lands in 11 Western states to fund housing initiatives. Key Montana Republicans, including Congressman Ryan Zinke and Senators Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy, have voiced strong opposition, emphasizing the importance of preserving public lands for outdoor recreation and better management rather than sale. The Senate parliamentarian ruled Lee's original expansive land sale proposal out of order under the Byrd Rule, prompting Lee to offer a scaled-back version that still includes selling a substantial amount of Bureau of Land Management land, which continues to face backlash. In the House, Representatives like Dan Newhouse and others have threatened to vote against the bill if it includes any public land sales, calling the provision a 'poison pill' that risks derailing the entire legislation. Zinke, formerly Interior Secretary, has been particularly vocal against the measure, asserting that affordable housing needs do not justify selling millions of acres and advocating instead for improved land management and access legislation. This internal GOP conflict complicates the bill's path forward, with the narrow House majority and Senate vote threshold making any dissent critical to the bill’s fate.