USAupdated 1h ago3 min read
Trump Announces Pentagon Super Range at Kalispell Rally, Promises Second Amendment Protection
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Trump held a campaign rally in Kalispell, Montana, on Oct. 14, 2026. The rally is part of a broader Western midterm tour to boost Republican candidates.
Trump’s Montana rally
President Donald Trump held a campaign rally at Majestic Valley Arena in Kalispell, Montana, on Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, as part of a western swing that included a third rally stretching about 75 minutes.
“Trump at his Montana rally announced that the Pentagon will establish a new ‘super range’ to test advanced weapons.”
Trump used the Montana event to announce that the Pentagon will establish a new “super range” to test advanced weapons, and he told the audience, “Montana will help ensure the American military always reigns supreme.”
Trump began the Montana rally with a heavy focus on gun rights, saying, “If you vote Republican, your cherished Second Amendment shall not be infringed on in any way, shape or form,” and he said Republican candidates Kurt Alme and Aaron Flint have earned top ratings from the National Rifle Association.
Trump also said Democratic Senate candidate Alani Bankhead has earned an F and Democratic House candidate Sam Forstag has been given a question mark by the NRA because he “refused to fill out a form,” and Trump added, “Every voter here in Montana and all across the nation needs to know that your Second Amendment, which is under siege, is also totally protected with me and my friends over here that are coming with me to Washington.”
Backed-off plans and polls
Trump’s campaign trail came as CNN highlighted that the administration had appeared to back off using millions of dollars in taxpayer funds to run ads promoting Trump and live streaming the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan. Trump indicated he would use campaign money to pay for the ads and that the live stream will no longer happen, and a Washington Post-ABC News poll showed registered voters opposed live streaming Hasan’s execution by a margin of 80%-19%.
Voters opposed the taxpayer-funded political ads by an 89%-9% margin in a Reuters-Ipsos poll, and a Washington Post poll showed registered voters opposed pardoning violent January 6 defendants by 83%-16%. CNN then connected the rally messaging to the administration’s broader political approach, saying Trump kept citing “unpopular ideas” at rallies “sometimes at length,” including the Fort Hood execution live stream that CNN said would be a propaganda win for Islamic extremists by turning Hasan into a very public martyr.
Midterms and congressional stakes
The U.S. midterm elections scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, 2026, will determine the composition of Congress and could shift the policy direction of the second administration of President Donald Trump. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and about one-third of the Senate will be up for grabs, and the result will determine which party holds the majority in each chamber for the next two years.
Republicans currently hold 218 seats in the House compared with 214 for Democrats, and there is also one independent legislator and two vacancies. Republicans currently hold 53 seats in the Senate compared with 45 for Democrats, and two are held by independent senators, while adding that if Republicans retain majorities Trump will have Congress’s support to push through initiatives and if Democrats gain control it could become harder to pass bills, negotiate the budget, and advance other administration priorities.