Public health experts in Montana have cautioned against putting too much stock into models like the popular University of Washington predictions, saying they are making decisions from local data and using several sources of modeling. Some models have shifted their predictions on the number of cases and deaths downward in an acknowledgement of measures like stay-at-home orders.

A group of three heavily armed men clad in camouflage stood in front of a pickup truck parked at the rally. Another man was grilling hot dogs in the truck's bed, handing them out to anyone who asked.

"We're here to protect our constitutional rights, our freedoms and hand out some free food," said Thomas Allen, who identified himself as a member of the Yellowstone Militia in Billings. At least three of the men traveled from Billings, which is in a county with 16% of the state’s cases and confirmed community spread, to participate in the rally.

They said they were "not at all concerned" about how their attendance might affect their health, and that their only concern was the "eroding" of constitutional rights.

"Everyone is getting too used to the new normal," Allen said. "We want our country back, our rights back."

The stay-at-home directive is afforded under the Montana Constitution and state statutes.