Knudsen, 2 other attorneys general leave national organization

HELENA, Mont. — Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is leaving the National Association of Attorneys General. He calls the group “intolerable.”

Last week, Knudsen posted a letter on his Facebook, announcing he’s leaving the group.

He wrote, “Montanans rightly expect their elected officials to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars and transparency from funds that are supposed to be managed in our best interests. Continued membership in the National Association of Attorneys General does not meet those expectations, so today I am officially ending it.”

The letter is also signed by the attorneys general of Texas and Missouri.

The NAAG represented every state for 114 years until Alabama left in 2021.

In the letter, Knudsen, Paxton and Schmitt cite “the association’s leftward shift over the past half decade” as reason for leaving.

They claim they met with NAAG leadership to voice their concerns but say nothing was done.

A spokesperson for NAAG said, “The Missouri, Montana, and Texas Attorney General Offices have been members in good standing since NAAG’s founding, and Attorneys General Eric Schmitt, Austin Knudsen, and Ken Paxton have been valued participants in the organization since they each took office. While we are disappointed in their decision, NAAG would welcome the Missouri, Montana, and Texas offices to re-engage as active members at any time.”

A spokesperson for Knudsen's office said they didn’t have time for an interview.

Knudsen, Paxton and Schmitt ended the letter with, “we will need to discuss the administrative and financial details involved in extracting ourselves from NAAG.”