Election mail bag Nov. 1
Independent voter supports GOP
I’m an independent voter and not beholden to any party.
I’m very sorry to say that today’s Democrat party is not the party of JFK that I voted for. It has been taken over by radicals who believe that Big Government is the solution for everything. It’s now the Socialist party and in their thirst for power they will say and do anything to gain power. Their playbook is divide and conquer.
I’m voting for Matt Rosendale for the Senate and Greg Gianforte for the House because they will follow the Constitution, they are not Socialists, they know how to create jobs, they are not swampers, they are against open borders, higher taxes and Big Government Socialism. They will make the needs of legal Montana families their number one priority.
I’m not voting for Jon Tester because he is a card holding swamper and he is the complete opposite of Rosendale and Gianforte.
Tester voted for Obamacare, the Big Government Socialist takeover of our health care, and he voted against the tax plan that helps the vast majority of Montana families and has proven to be a great stimulus to create jobs and an economic boom.
Why did Tester vote that way? Because his swamp handlers told him to do so. Tester has more loyalty to his swamp comrades than he does you the legal residents of Montana.
It’s time for Tester to go back to his farm.
If Tester is elected and if Chuck Schumer and or Nancy Pelosi and Maxine Waters gets control of the House and or the Senate we will see:
Impeach Trump, open borders, attack on the 2nd Amendment, stagnant economy, higher taxes, crippling regulations, bigger government, rise in unemployment and welfare and food stamps and PC on steroids.
In the Democrats’ PC world the Islamic terrorists are just peace loving people who just get upset sometimes. The vicious killers, the MS 13 gangs, are just good kids who are misunderstood. Illegal aliens are really Americans anyway.
I’m 78 and this is the most important midterm election in my lifetime. Will we be free or controlled by Big Government Socialism?
That is why it’s an easy vote for me. I will vote for Rosendale and Gianforte. They are the candidates who will fight to keep us free. If you want freedom from Big Government Socialism, you better vote because you can bet the Socialists will surely vote.
— Dave French, Eureka
Williams supports 2nd Amendment
Greg Gianforte continues to blatantly lie about Kathleen Williams’ position on firearms. Williams is a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. She is a gun owner and a hunter. A direct quote from Williams, “I would never advocate for limitations on semi-automatic weapons. I own two of them actually. Both my shotguns are auto-loaders and so that makes them semi-automatic.”
If Gianforte has to tell big lies and use scare tactics instead of debating real issues using the truth to get reelected, he is not someone we should want to represent us in Congress.
—Barbara Palmer, Whitefish
Demand answers from Brodehl
Randy Brodehl is a bad choice for Flathead County Commissioner. Why? He says that he can improve city/county relationships. Four rural fire departments canceled their mutual-aid agreements with Kalispell in 2002. Was Brodehl “blindsided” by this decision? Ask those fire chiefs. Brodehl says that he can reorganize the 911 call center to make it more efficient. During his tenure as fire chief, at least 20 firefighters left or retired and a union dispute was played out in public. Ask these people what happened.
“Roger Phillips, who served 21 years on the Kalispell fire department and retired in November 2006 as a captain, echoed Telfer. “There’s no morale,” Phillips said. “There is no morale anymore.” (Flathead Beacon, 10/31/2007) “Brodehl retired in July 2008, although he had not worked and was on leave two months before that.” ( Daily Inter Lake, 11/18/2009)
Why was he on leave and why did he retire? Voters should be given answers to these questions before they vote. Three commissioners make decisions that impact our daily lives. Demand answers! No on Brodehl.
—Charlene Iannucci, Kalispell
O’Neil is pro-freedom
Having worked closely with Jerry O’Neil on his campaign for House District 3, I can say not only do I agree with his philosophy of government but I can also vouch for his character.
Hard working, principled and knowledgeable, with a great voting record when he was in the Montana Legislature, I know it will be good for Montanans for him to be re-elected. He will staunchly support the right to life, the right to keep and bear arms, growth of the private sector and downsizing of government which will result in lower taxes for we the people. His pamphlet summarizes Jerry O’Neil as “pro-freedom, pro-fiscal responsibility, prolife, pro-jobs.” For less government, more personal responsibility and liberty, re-elect Jerry O’Neil for House District 3
—Willie Douglass, Columbia Falls
Brodehl offers conservative leadership
Since you are reading this page I assume you are interested in the community you live in and the issues that surround us. With the elections just around the corner I’d like to say a few things that I know to be true about one of the candidates. His name is Randy Brodehl and he is a conservative and running as a conservative.
Randy has served two terms in the Montana House of Representatives and in that time he has proven his leadership as a conservative. I know his focus is on fiscal responsibility, limited government, property rights, and fair taxes. He is eager to talk to anyone, almost anytime about what concerns them.
Randy works hard at serving others, being fair, and always doing what he believes is right. He will not be swayed by special interests or negative pressure. Please join me in voting for Randy Brodehl for Flathead County Commissioner.
— Jeff Van Helden
The party of Lincoln
Lincoln freed the slaves and the Republican party has been trying to make us all slaves ever since.
They are against organized labor and for, right-to-work “for less,” laws. They are against even the concept of a minimum wage. They have been opposed to Social Security from the very start. Gianforte says that working people should work till they die. They are against universal health care. Every advanced country in the world has it except the U.S. They are for Big Pharma and big insurance companies, big political contributors. They are against public education and for for-profit charter schools. Education only for the rich. They are against any form of regulations on banks industry or business. Most of all they are against any form of taxation on the rich. Only little people should pay taxes.
In the last 100 there has not been one Republican law program or policy that helps working people to prosper and thrive. Not one thing. Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, labor laws, overtime, paid vacation, health care, minimum wage, the SEC, banking laws, Glass Steagall [Act], civil rights, voting rights, farm programs, conservation the EPA. Everything that makes this country great has been done by the Democrats.
The Republicans won’t make America great again — they will turn us into a Third World country.
—Tom Shaughnessy, Kalispell
6-mill questions
Why would we vote 6 mills to support the Montana University System? Do they need our money because…
1. They care about our kids?
2. They are not State employees and have their own unions and pay scale?
3. Their wages average about one-third more than a State employee?
4. The commissioner’s office has to have their own union negotiators and lawyers?
5. They are always getting pay raises?
6. Their campuses are hot beds of liberal thinking and values?
7. No matter how much we pay, tuition just keeps going up?
8. We’ve always given it to them?
— Jay Trepanier, Kalispell
Clark dedicated to serving the people
Are you tired of greed? Are you tired of elected officials NOT listening to the citizens of Flathead County? Are you tired of the lack of transparent and honest dialogue that all county officials should be having both with each other and with the people of Flathead County?
Well, I AM! It is past time to start to rid Flathead County of self-serving, dishonest individuals who think they have lifetime appointments to the public trough! That is why I have voted to support Tom Clark for Flathead County Commissioner.
Tom Clark is a multi-generation Flathead County resident dedicated to serving the people of Flathead County. Tom has served 14 years on three different school boards. Tom cares deeply about our public lands, and wants to see wise planning for the future growth of Flathead County. Tom Clark will actually listen to ALL Flathead County residents, instead of only a small group of special interests. Part of Tom’s willingness to listen is his commitment to develop a better working relationship between the cities and Flathead County.
Tom Clark will protect the water of Flathead County - ALL the waters of Flathead County. Flathead County water belongs to ALL COUNTY RESIDENTS! Our water should NEVER be allowed to be sold!!! Randy Brodehl will NOT protect our waters.
Equally important, voters need to ask themselves why did over 20 people leave the Kalispell Fire Department while Brodehl was in charge? Why was there low morale, high turnover, distrust in leadership, and poor communications between firefights on the line and fire department officials? Generalized excuses do not answer those questions.
Voters need to pay attention to what candidates DO, NOT to what they SAY!
I ask you to vote for Tom Clark for Flathead County Commissioner.
— Christina Granrud, Kalispell
If I-185 should pass...
Taxing tobacco products to the hilt may reduce illness. Perhaps it would successfully cut usage to the point that this tax would no longer yield any revenue to the state!
I-185 does not tax filters, rolling papers, pipes, or devices for inhaling, so folks may find others things to ignite and put in their mouths.
I-185 does not confine itself to raising nicotine/tobacco taxes. It is an initiative aimed at providing a variety of earmarked appropriations with the heftiest portion dedicated to Medicaid expansion. It oversteps the Legislature’s constitutional responsibility to produce a balanced budget.
If I-185 should pass, it would be prudent for the Legislature to exercise its power to amend the language of the initiative to eliminate the earmarking provisions.
—Margaret S Davis, Lakeside
Election graffiti
In our neighborhood the supporters of Rosendale have spray-painted the signs of his opponent.
Does that tell us anything about him?
— Robert O’Neil, Kalispell