At a rally in Missoula, community organizers and speakers criticized what they called an excessive federal expenditure on an Army birthday event and urged attendees to pressure national legislators to oppose a package of federal cuts called the “big ugly bill.” Organizers said the bill would threaten Medicaid, school meal funding and other programs that serve children and veterans.

Rose, a founder of Missoula Resists, told the crowd “holding a military birthday party with $45,000,000 of our hard-earned tax dollars is wrong” and urged people to contact their senators and representatives. She said Montana has already “lost $2,800,000 in funding to feed kids at school” and warned that Medicaid—which she said serves about 100,000 Montana children—is threatened by the proposed federal cuts. “We expect to vote on that big ugly bill… We need to make sure they know we are watching,” Rose said.

Army veteran and nurse Kathy Wilson spoke about military service and asked the public to support returning service members’ medical and mental-health needs. “Let us remember the promises that were made to them for medical, dental, mental health, rehabilitation, education from the GI Bill, housing assistance,” Wilson said, describing the sacrifices service members make and urging continued support.

Organizers directed attendees to local tables to sign up for outreach and to contact national legislators; they also encouraged participation in local Juneteenth and Pride events and other community activities as ways to support affected groups. Event planners said the rally included speakers representing veterans, LGBTQ advocacy, student organizers and the Montana Black Collective.

The event was recorded by MCAT, organizers said, and an American Sign Language interpreter was present to increase accessibility. Organizers repeatedly framed the rally as a civic call to action rather than a formal political endorsement of specific candidates.