Sarah Vowell for The New York Times has a great piece that perfectly sums up why I’m very confident U.S. Senator Jon Tester (D. MT) will win re-election against State Auditor Matt Rosendale (R. MT):
Mr. Rosendale, a Maryland native, is such a meanspirited flake that my Republican father, a guy who wants his ashes shot out of a cannon he built from scratch in his backyard gun shop, plans to vote for Senator Tester, a Democrat. According to Dad, a Gallatin County voter, Mr. Tester, a second-term senator and third-generation farmer from Big Sandy, is “a Montanan who understands Montana.” At least I think that’s what he said. Once he told my mother and me he was voting for a Democrat I was distracted by determining if Mom needed medical attention.
For weeks, most commercial breaks on Montana television have featured one of the tongue-in-cheek ads scolding Mr. Rosendale for referring to himself as a rancher even though he’s never owned a single head of cattle, much less a brand. Of course the tagline is “Matt Rosendale: All hat, no cattle.” The rancher fib does make him seem less trustworthy, plus weirdly ignorant of the fact that ranches by definition require, like, livestock — a sticking point in a state where cattle is the No. 1 agricultural product.
My dad and I both have a soft spot for Theodore Roosevelt, and one way to understand Senator Tester’s bipartisan appeal is that he’s less of a cookie-cutter Democrat and more of a Bull Moose wild card. He voted against confirming Brett Kavanaugh, but he’s just as ardent about shoring up funding for Malmstrom Air Force Base in Great Falls or the reconstruction of Glacier National Park's Going-to-the-Sun Road.
The ranking member on the Veterans Affairs Committee representing a state with about 100,000 vets, Senator Tester made national headlines and incurred presidential wrath by demanding a better nominee to head Veterans Affairs than Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson. But when presented with President Trump’s second choice, the more sober Mr. Wilkie, Senator Tester voted to confirm him, assuring Secretary Wilkie at his first committee hearing, “I sincerely, and I mean this, I want you to succeed, man.”
GIve the whole piece a read. When you’re done, let’s make sure Tester is ready to go for re-election. Click below to donate and get involved with Tester and his fellow Montana Democrats campaigns:
Jon Tester
Kathleen Williams