Letters to the editor Sept. 24

A sign of the times

I just wanted to express my personal disappointment and revulsion at the recent spate of Democratic campaign sign removals from lawns around Kalispell. I have had signs stolen from my front yard on four separate occasions within the last month. On the most recent occasion, after I had called the Kalispell police after midnight to report the theft of six of my eight signs, they turned up on the walk in front of my house the next morning. The most recent robbery, last Friday night, was also reported to the police, but the signs have not reappeared.

It is a sign of the times (no pun intended) that this very traditional form of self-expression during election periods seems to have become a victim of a very intolerant, almost rageful, partisanship. Some blame it on prankish teens, but I suspect that is naïve and wishful thinking, coverup and deflection. It feels, because of various other reports from around town, to be a more organized, mature (sic) campaign.

The officer who took my most recent report Saturday morning asked to know the value of the signs that were stolen. I had to laugh, and thought to myself, “What’s the value of freedom of expression and respect for difference in a democracy and are there perhaps too many in this country who don’t value democracy and won’t appreciate what we have until it’s gone.” I didn’t give him an answer because putting a number on the theft could not give it the significance it merits.

This is no way for good citizens to behave. Time to walk the talk.

Wake up, Kalispell. Wake up, Montana. Wake up, USA. Lots of talk about freedom and democracy; not enough thinking and doing democracy.

—Ron Gerson, Kalispell

Help Trump make America great

There is one person who can make American great again, again. That person is President Donald J. Trump — but he needs our help. Montanans can help him succeed in this endeavor by sending Sen. Steve Daines and Matt Rosendale to Congress and Greg Gianforte to our governorship.

If we want Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer and their socialist minions to set the agenda for America in the next four years we will send Democrats to Congress.

Do we want Pelosi, Schumer, AOC, Omar, Sanders, Biden, Harris, Bullock and their ilk to decide the future for our children and grandchildren?

Steve Bullock gained a 1% following on his ego trip for the presidency in 2019. Now he is on a second ego trip, running for a Senate seat he did not want until Chuck Schumer flew to Montana in the dark of the night with a satchel of money to entice him to run. Now Bullock says that if he winds he will not be beholden to the big boys in Washington, D.C. I’m sorry, but he already is in Schumer’s back pocket. We presently have Sen. Tester in on of Schumer’s pockets, we cannot afford to have two.

So be sure to vote like your life and that of your children and grandchildren depends on it ­— because it does ­— and help President Trump make America great again, again.

­—Allan Fredrickson, Kalispell

Hook and bullet candidate?

The Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act is a chance for us Montanans to come together in 2020 and get something right. From fly fishing to backpacking, recreation on public lands is the best thing going in Montana.

The BCSA would add 80,000 acres of wilderness to national forest around the Blackfoot River and its tributaries to ensure that those recreation options exist forever. The act makes room for motorized use and sustainable timber harvesting in the area as well.

What more could we ask for? Not much, I’d say. In fact, 75% of Montanans agree that the BCSA is right for Montana.

And yet, Sen. Steve Daines is again dragging his feet before giving support to the bill. If we are to believe, as his ads say, that Sen. Daines is a hook and bullet candidate, then let’s see some action on his part. From his position on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, he could really be giving the BCSA the momentum that it needs. Instead, he is sitting back to see if enough of us Montanans will make some noise and force his hand.

The window is fast closing for Senator Daines to prove that he is willing to stand up for what he says he believes in.

—Jedd Sankar-Gorton, Whitefish

A polarized nation

Wow! Could Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell be any more hypocritical? Four years ago he delayed a vote on a Supreme Court nominee for 10 months so that the election could take place before any action. Now that we have a Republican in the White House he is willing to take a vote before the election only six weeks away.

This ideological thinking is what has made us into a polarized nation.

­—Dave LeBleu, Lakeside

Clear choice for governor

In the upcoming race for governor, the people of Montana have before them a choice quite like their choice for president. Republicans have nominated successful businessmen and achievers. The Democrats have nominated lifelong political functionaries. The difference could not be clearer.

Greg Gianforte knows what it takes to provide an environment for the people of Montana to be successful in their businesses, jobs, and careers. Allied with a Republican Legislature, Greg Gianforte has a plan to develop Montana’s economy thus benefitting everyone. He opposes increasing taxes, burdensome regulations, and unconstitutional mandates that have destroyed the Montana economy.

If you want to restore the Montana way of life, rebuild the Montana economy, and once again be free from a tyrannical governor, vote for Greg Gianforte for governor.

—Rep. John Fuller, R-Kalispell

A losing battle

Little Stevie Daines is at it again with his full-blown hypocrisy by siding with Trump to support his shameless selection of a new Supreme Court judge. The real irony here is that Trump is so obsessed with getting himself re-elected that he has little time to support Daine’s campaign. Yet, Stevie continues to be the lap-dog for this corrupt president.

In the last national election, Trump made no fewer than four trips to Montana in a failed attempt to unseat Jon Tester. He has made zero trips to Montana to help Daines. That should tell us something about Stevie Daines and how irrelevant he has become to the Senate. It also tells us that Donald Trump cares nothing about Montanans and our paltry three electoral votes. He can bail on Stevie Daines and still win red-state Montana.

Trump has turned his back on Daines and we should too by electing Steve Bullock to gain better traction in Washington. Trump and Daines are fighting a battle that they know they are going to lose.

­—Michael J. Ober, Kalispell