LETTER: Skees wrong, Bech right for District 11

On Nov. 8, there will be a very important election in House District 11 between Eileen Bech and Derek Skees.

Derek Skees served in the 2011 Legislature, in which he sponsored HB 382 (Nullification-of-Federal-Laws). This law would establish an 11-person commission in Montana to examine all federal statutes and eliminate those deemed unconstitutional. Nullification was an issue for which we fought the Civil War and the Supreme Court has consistently ruled that federal law overrides that of the states. Article VI, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution (Supremacy of the National Government) makes clear that the laws of the United States shall be the supreme law of the land, and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby. This bill did not pass.

Does Derek Skees believe in the U. S. Constitution or the oath of office where he swore to support, protect and defend the Constitution (so help me God)?

Eileen will take the oath of office seriously and support, protect and defend the Constitution of both Montana and the United States.

She is a third-generation Montanan and has a B.A in English and an M.A in history (emphasis in frontier and Native American studies). For 36 years, Eileen has lived in District 11, raised two sons, taught at Flathead High School, Flathead Valley Community College and was a full-time homemaker.

In order to represent the needs and interests of all Montana families, Eileen wants to make sure we maintain funding for quality public education. We need all of our neighbors to be skilled and well-trained to keep working people working in Montana.

To create jobs, she believes improving the infrastructure of Montana’s roads and bridges as well as sewage plants, water systems, and promoting renewable energy such as wind, solar and geothermal will put Montanans to work.

She also believes that we need our federal agencies to establish the priorities and the funding to maintain our public lands and keep them public, so we all can enjoy hunting, fishing, hiking and Mother Nature. These are lands that belong to all of us, not just Montanans.

I support Eileen Bech because she is intelligent and listens to people. She will work to keep Montana the last best place by using logic and reason in her decision making.

Vote for Eileen Bech. —Rodrik Brosten, Bigfork