Mike Dennison recently profiled 10 important races for the control of the Montana legislature. Here are his identified seats held by Democrats (with notes):
House District 8 (central Kalispell): An open Democratic seat, this district always features a razor-close race, and this year has the added element of a third-party candidate. Bill Jones, a dentist and former Republican state legislator seen as a moderate, is running as an Independent, along with Democrat Bryan Schutt, a local architect, and Republican Steve Lavin, a Montana Highway Patrol officer.
LiTW has already spilled ink on this race. Schutt's our man. Donate. Volunteer. Contact.
HD20 (south Great Falls): Another open Democratic seat in a district that usually has close races. Republican Steve Fitzpatrick, an attorney, is squaring off against Democrat Donna Zook, an advocate for the mentally ill.
Again, another race mentioned here on LiTW. Donna Zook is our candidate, an early and steadfast opponent to the Highwood coal-fired plant.
Her Republican opponent, Steve Fitzpatrick, an attorney highly regarded by Gregg Smith at ECW, has wildly outraised Zook, cashing in on a whopping $25,965, according to the Great Falls Tribune, an obscene amount for a House race. What gives? Sadly he lacks a website, so we can't really check him out, but we can get a glimmer of an idea from the GFT profile of the HD20 race. In the questionnaire, this is how Fitzpatrick defines how he's different from Zook: "We need to bring new ideas and a new perspective to the Legislature. We can't continue to promote the same policies that have resulted in enormous debt and the highest level of joblessness since the Great Depression."
(A) The Montana state budget is not running a debt. (B) The policies that have led to high joblessness are free market policies: the deregulation of the financial industry. Are you telling me you're a progressive reformer, Fitzpatrick? I don't think so. What you have here is GOP electioneering bullsh*t, which challenges Gregg's characterization of the man as "honest."
Contact Zook, or donate.
HD36 (northeastern Montana corner): Rep. Julie French, D-Scobey, who knocked off a Republican incumbent four years ago in this rural district, now faces her own stiff challenge from Republican Austin Knudsen, a Culbertson attorney who grew up on a local farm and ranch.
This is what I wrote about French and HD36 before: "Scobey resident Julie French is our only incumbent in the battleground House races. Elected to the House first in 2006, she became the Democratic Majority whip in only her second term in office. She sits on the Human Services and Rules committees, and was vice chair of the Agriculture committee. In 2008, she was the primary sponsor of several bills, including an attempt to revise Montana's medical marijuana laws, which was killed by gross partisanship. Her opponent, Austin Knudsen, is a lawyer and big-business Republican running against health care reform."
Donate. Contact.
HD78 (East Helena): Two relatively well-known candidates are squaring off for this open seat, which Democrats have been winning by close margins in recent years. Democrat Joe Cohenour, a Highway Patrol trooper, is trying to succeed his wife, Jill, who can't run because of term limits. Republican Steve Gibson, a longtime administrator at the state Department of Corrections, lost a 2008 bid for the seat.
The Helena IR ran a good, in-depth profile of this race. Both candidates are well qualified for the seat, and Gibson's years of experience of public service tell me he recognizes the value of good government, and won't be voting to eliminate the HHS budget. Cohenour served on the Helena school board and supported the district's health and sex ed curriculum, and he's the pro-choice candidate in this race.
Really what it comes down to is if Gibson's really the moderate he paints himself to be. Can he resist the crushing pressure of the Republican caucus and vote against the interests of what has been a very radical bloc the last two sessions? Based on the experience of past Republican moderates - I'm guessing not. Cohenour, on the other hand, has a ringing endorsement from Montana Conservation Voters. Admittedly he wasn't my first choice, but if we want to avoid letting the inmates run the asylum, he's your man. Donate. Contact.
Senate District 17 (Havre and portions of Hill, Blaine counties): House Speaker Bob Bergren, D-Havre, is trying to move up to the Senate by winning this open seat held by an outgoing Democrat. He faces a stiff challenge from Republican Rowlie Hutton, a well-known minister at a Christian Church in Havre.
This is what Yellowstone Kelly wrote about this race: "For the D's to have any shot at controlling the Senate, Bergren, the outgoing Speaker of the House of Representatives, must hold this seat. Hutton is the pastor of one of those large Sunday warehouse churches. If Bergren commits himself to the task at hand, this seat should stay blue. Advantage at outset:Slightly Bergren."
Bob Bergren is our man here. There's not much out there on Rowlie Hutton, but what there is hints that this guy is going to be a pretty fierce social conservative. Take this GFT profile of SD17. This is what Hutton has to say (amidst egregious use of scare quotes) on the back end of the report: "The role of government is to help people lead quiet and tranquil lives. Voters want someone who is not part of the back-slapping culture, but will instead fight for the people rather than governing against them. I believe in the sanctity of life and limited government. The recent controversy in Helena surrounding the forced sex education curriculum is a good example of government out of touch with the people. This is not the first time this issue has reared its ugly head. A proposal was made in the last two sessions to make this a statewide effort. I would oppose this - my opponent voted for it."
The Helena sex ed and health curriculum was done legally, in the open, and with the input of the community; it is not an "example of government out of touch with the people," it's government representing the interest of the community. H*ll, anti-health-curriculum crusader Kristi Allen-Gailushas dropped her lawsuit against the program because she received no support from the community. Oh, and the legislature has no power over the curricula decided on by local school boards. In short, this is pure, unmitigated lying bullsh*t intended only to rile the base.
Donate to or contact Bob Bergren for volunteer work.
I'll get to the second half of Dennison's article later... |
