Letters to the editor Oct. 28

Tranel is too liberal

Monica Tranel is in lockstep with the Biden administration. Are things better today than they were two years ago? Absolutely not.

Why are we letting Monica Tranel get away with the falsehoods she is spewing in order to win an election? Why are we subjected to the uncreative, disgusting ads showing multitudes of snakes slither across our screens? Why isn’t anyone calling her out on her lies and accusations? Why is she continuously using her three daughters as props? She’s getting away with it all.

Monica Tranel was born in Wyoming. She is not a native Montanan, but did grow up in Montana.

Monica was a Republican. She didn’t tell us that.

Monica ran for the Montana Public Service Commission in 2004 and lost as a Republican.

Monica worked on Conrad Burn’s staff in Washington, D.C.

Monica changed political parties, ran for the Public Service Commission in 2020 and lost, again. She didn’t tell us that.

Monica was hired to get Richard Rigg’s (accused child rapist) guilty conviction overturned. She says this is a lie but, if you’re interested, check out the website law.justia.com. She fully denies this in her ad…how could she defend a convicted rapist when she has three daughters, says she?

Monica is against short-term rentals in the state of Montana, yet owns thousand of dollars in AirBnB stock. She didn’t tell us that.

Monica is pledging support of new government spending via “Build Back Better,” “Green New Deal,” “Inflation Reduction Act” and “Medicare for All,” adding trillions to the national debt and driving inflation off the charts. She didn’t tell us that one, either.

Monica claims to support gun owners’ rights but supports red flag laws and would end immunity for gun manufacturers.

Monica defends “350Montana’ and if you go to the website to investigate what they do, Zinke supporters are referred to as “racist.” Surprise!

Finally, if Ryan Zinke wins the House seat, he comes in with seniority which could put him on the Appropriations Committee. With that, he would do everything in his power to defund many of the outrageous drains of taxpayers’ money.

A primary strategy used by liberals is to accuse conservatives of heaven-knows-what and see what sticks. The accused, then, spends an inordinate amount of time and money defending themselves, making the process the punishment.

Ryan Zinke had a multitude of accusations thrown at him but was found guilty of none and resigned anyway. Kind of like the unfounded accusations against Gen. Michael Flynn, Judge Clarence Thomas, Judge Brett Cavanaugh … guilty until proven innocent.

“We need a warrior, not a lawyer.”

— Larry and Dorothy Ashcraft, Polson

Fuller out of touch

I read with interest Mr. Fuller’s comments from the Kalispell Chamber candidate forum. I quote Mr. Fuller: “Back in the day, there was no shortage of childcare because every child had a mother.”

Mr. Fuller appears to be stuck in the past, not in 2022. Thus, to me, Mr. Fuller’s solution for families where both parents work, or single parent families, is: Tough. Deal with it.

Wow, is this the best Mr. Fuller can offer working families?

Do parents need to remain in abusive or loveless relationships to survive Mr. Fuller’s childcare solution? Is Mr. Fuller’s solution for childcare just to kick single and working families to the curb? Gosh, I hope not.

For Senate District 4, please vote for forward-looking Kyle Waterman. Kyle will work for solutions for all members of our diverse community.

— Peter Saunders, Kalispell

Getts for HD3

Voters in HD3, which encompasses Columbia Falls and outlying areas, are fortunate to have Andrea Getts as a candidate. This young woman graduated from Columbia Falls high school and returned after earning her college degree. In her words, “I felt drawn back to the place I grew up, hoping to contribute to the local community that invested in me as a child.”

She currently works for a local nonprofit food access organization. Having been raised in a large family, Andrea knows the financial struggles that others in her community experience daily. She regularly attends meetings to hear what her neighbors think about topics like growth, affordable housing, and toxic cleanups.

As a legislator, Andrea would listen to her constituents and work for the needs of HD3. Please take the time to visit her website to read more about her. When you do, I believe that you will vote Getts.

— Charlene Iannucci, Kalispell

Supports Mitchell

I know a politician when I see one. I am tired of being told that someone is going to listen to us, vote for less government, and challenge the status quo. Too often they break their promises to blue collar Montana workers and their families. Thankfully, some elected officials live up to those promises.

Rep. Braxton Mitchell has lived up to the promises he made when we elected him two years ago. He voted to support our Second Amendment rights, exempt military pensions and Social Security income from state income tax, repeal the local option gas tax, and repeal the business equipment tax. These are just some issues that our district feels strongly about.

Braxton Mitchell told us he would cut government spending and watch out for taxpayers. Out of 100 representatives (67 of which are Republicans), he was one of only 37 members who had the courage to vote against a pay increase for state employees. Think about that. Nearly half of Republicans bailed, but he stuck with us. Government workers had been exempt from the economic impacts of coronavirus, while also receiving excellent pay, retirement benefits, and healthcare insurance most could only dream of.

In his first session, Rep. Mitchell co-sponsored over a dozen successful bills and bucked members of both parties by voting to keep men out of women’s sports, against raiding important 9-1-1 system funds to the state library, and sponsored legislation to support Montana coal which provides funding for things such as K-12 schools and infrastructure.

This next session his first priority is going to be returning the $1.8 billion that Montanans were overtaxed last year. Braxton Mitchell isn’t just fighting the government, he’s fighting for us. For all of this, Braxton Mitchell has proved worthy to earn a second term.

— Jacob Bulawsky, Columbia Falls

Holmquist’s track record

I wanted to take the time to write a letter of support for Pam Holmquist for Flathead County Commissioner. Pam has proven to be able to get things done in a fiscally responsible manner by managing the county budget with no debt and an emergency fund to back it up.

With her years of experience, a track record of protecting property rights and being tough on crime, I hope that the people of Flathead County will join me in support of Pam Holmquist for county commissioner.

— Tyler Hoffman, Columbia Falls

Impressed with Repke

Meeting John Repke was an eye-opener for me. He is running for Public Service Commission in District 5. Here was a modest man, obviously not a politician, running for a position for which he is uniquely qualified in terms of knowledge and experience. He’s running because he saw that his expertise is needed in evaluating complex issues before the commission.

He is committed to work with civility and diligence to achieve fairness for all parties. I’m convinced that most Montanan’s want this kind of ethical person in our elected positions regardless of party. Meet him if you can and see what I mean. I plan to vote for him and urge you to as well.

— Suzy Holt, Helena