I received a question from a reader last week about something I have been wondering myself. If the Democrats really want to get elected this cycle why have they not been doing anything? Well they have been doing a little boycotting, complaining about missing sign disclaimers and such but for all practical purposes they are sitting on their butts.
The Republican office is bustling with activity every time I go by the place 7 days a week. I had to personally make four trips down to the place to find a time when there weren’t people there so I could get this picture. They are open every day and in the evenings it seems the place is packed with volunteers’ busy working for their candidates. Surprisingly I am also observing people going to and fro from their office that I have never known to be involved in politics in all the years I have lived in Havre. Signs for the republican candidates are planted everywhere and they are driving me insane in my neighborhood hanging stuff on my door and mailing me voter information. Yet again this morning on my way to work I see new Republican signs that weren’t there yesterday. Even the termed out House Representative turned Senate candidate is nowhere to be seen. I have actually spotted only two “Vote for Bob Bergren” signs in all of Havre while his opponent Rowlie Hutton is plastered everywhere. Funny thing about that is Bergren had close to $8,000 dollars in his campaign chest as of the primary yet it doesn’t appear he is planning on using it for any promotion for this office.
I have yet to even hear of the Democrats having any regular candidate meetings to assist their candidates. Are they brazen enough to think that because Havre historically favors Democrat candidates that they will automatically be the victors without lifting a finger to get elected? No matter how the election turns out it is painfully obvious to everyone in Havre that the Republicans are out working their opponents by leaps and bounds. If a candidate doesn’t even have the gumption to work to get elected how much effort do you think they plan on putting forth to actually represent us? Now don't get me wrong - I am sure the Republiocans are liking this lack of effort by the local Democrats but it does puzzle everyone in town. I got to hand it to the local Republicans this year …….they are working their tails off and I give them an A for effort..
Senate District 17 is being sought by political newcomer Republican Rowlie Hutton who filed on the very first day it was legal to do so and is being challenged by termed out house representative Bob Bergren that filed for office the very last minute it was legal to do so. In my mind this is a race where there is no question as to the better choice. Bob Bergren has had his shot, is termed out, and it is now time to move on. Term limits were put into place to get some fresh blood into the political process on occasion and it was not intended that they should just jump over to run for a new office when their terms expire to become “professional politicians”.
Bob has had 8 years in the House to bring those good-paying jobs to Montana that he now claims that he wants to work hard towards establishing. Where are they Bob? It is time to give the new guy a shot. Hutton is promising to work against tax hikes and increased fees in the next legislative session where our Senators will be facing a massive deficit in the next budget. Hutton also promises to work towards a “sustainable budget” and towards controlling a government that is spinning out of control. It is time for a change.
I am voting for Rowlie Hutton for Senate District 17 ------------ No Question!
House District 33 which encompasses part of Havre and the North-western portion of Hill County is currently held by Bob Bergren who is prevented from running for re-election by term-limits. Republican Kris Hansen is running against Democrat Jack Trethewey. Neither Hansen nor Trethewey responded to our kind offer to post their campaign Bios on our blog.
Kris Hansen is currently employed as the Chief Deputy County Attorney for Hill County and Jack Trethewey manages the local Zip Trip convenience store in his off hours and has been a Havre firefighter since 1992.
Kris does have a website at http://www.hansenforhouse.com/ for further information and my Google searches failed to find anything for Jack.
I am inclined not to support Jack because of the anti-Christian sentiment of the ACLU suit his wife instigated but I am keeping an open mind and am undecided at this point.
You tell me readers – who should I support in this race?
The race for House District 34 pits incumbent Republican Wendy Warburton against Democrat challenger Dana Sapp-Siedel. Wendy has provided the Corrector with the following candidate information and picture. Ms Siedel has failed to respond to our invitation to post her information on the Havre Daily Corrector
Rep. Wendy Warburton, Republican
Seeking re-election to second term in Montana House District 34 (Eastern Hill and Northern Blaine Counties)
• NRA endorsed & rated “A”
• MT Shooting Sports Assoc. endorsed & rated “A+”
• NFIB Guardian of Small Business Award & endorsement
• MT Chamber of Commerce Honorable Mention & 91%
• Montanans for Multiple Use 100%
• United Property Owners of MT 100%
• MT Family Foundation 100%
• Right to Life of MT endorsement
• MT Agricultural PAC endorsement
• Endorsed by MT Farm Bureau
I am running for re-election to continue to represent my friends and neighbors in Montana House District 34. I care deeply about my country, state, and fellow citizens, and I'm concerned about the direction our state and our nation are heading. With alarming things happening at the federal level in our government today, now is a crucial time for determined leaders at the state level to stand up for our freedom, values, and way of life.
As my voting record and endorsements prove, some of the key issues I stand for include:
-Gun rights (I’m an NRA and MT Shooting Sports Association member)
- Property rights
- Lower taxes
- Pro-life, pro-family values
- A better climate for business and agriculture
- Natural resource and alternative energy development
- Better opportunities for young Montanans to stay in the state and prosper.
I’m a fourth-generation Montana cowgirl. I was raised on my family’s ranch south of Chinook, where I learned the value and rewards of hard work. I attended Zurich Elementary and graduated from Chinook High School in 1994. As a National Merit Finalist, I earned a full scholarship to the Honors Program at Liberty University, a Christian college in Virginia, from which I graduated summa cum laude in 1998. Since then I’ve worked in the nonprofit, business, education, and political fields – a background that provides me with ample experience to draw from as a legislator.
I’ve lived and worked on both the East and West coasts and have traveled in 35 states. I know Montana is the best place on earth. I want future generations of Montanans to experience the freedom-loving lifestyle, independent-spirited Western heritage, and unique opportunities that I have experienced – too much of which seems in danger of slipping away.
I am a conservative. The definition of “conservative” is one who believes in conserving the Constitution. I truly believe “that government governs best which governs least.” We don’t need excessive taxes, laws, or other government restrictions in our lives. At the same time, we do need to jealously protect our liberties.
I am willing to put in all the hard work necessary in Helena to protect YOUR Constitutional rights and create better opportunities for all Montanans to prosper.
Committee Service during the 2009 Legislative Session:
• House Agriculture Committee
• House Natural Resources Committee
• House Judiciary Committee
• Rules Committee
A Few Key Accomplishments: Gun rights. Sponsored & supported crucial gun rights bills, such as Montana Firearms Freedom Act, Castle Doctrine bill HB228, and HJ14 supporting the right to self defense in national parks. While self-proclaimed “women’s groups” testified against every pro-gun bill, I stood for Montana women who believe in our gun rights. I strongly support hunting, but gun rights are not just about hunting. They are also, and even more importantly, about citizen self defense. Property rights. Serving on House Natural Resources Committee, helped defeat bills backed by radical environmentalists that would have eroded private property rights. In Sept. 2010, traveled to Malta, MT, to speak before BLM Director Bob Abbey against the development of an unwanted Treasured Landscape national monument in Phillips County or anyplace in North Central Montana. Water issues. Co-sponsored and gathered bipartisan support for important water bills. United 101 Republican and Democrat legislators to sign letter to Homeland Security urging them not to burden irrigators with ridiculous dam surveillance costs. Working with local landowners and congressional staff to challenge burdensome FEMA floodplain regulations. Lower taxes & a better climate for business and agriculture. Earned NFIB Guardian of Small Business Award and endorsement, and Honorable Mention and 91% rating from Montana Chamber of Commerce for pro-business voting record. Serving on House Agriculture Committee, fought efforts by animal rights extremists that would have hurt the agriculture industry and legitimate breeders. Co-sponsored horse processing bill. Working to address deer overpopulation. Pro-life, pro-family values. Serving on House Judiciary Committee, became a pro-life leader fighting for unborn babies, and for family values, including one-man, one-woman marriage. Passed HJ25 and have worked hard in the past year to help improve Montana’s customer service for elderly Medicare patients and their families. For taking the lead on crucial issues like these, I was nominated by Senate President & House Republican leadership for Council of State Governments’ Western Legislative Academy. Better opportunities for young Montanans. Consistently voted to try to build a more business friendly tax structure, become more competitive with other states, decrease bureaucracy, encourage development of our natural resources, and support adequate, quality education. Working to support opening Wild Horse and Turner border ports to 24 hours.
“Representative Warburton was a strong voice for small business and job creation. She has a vision for long-term, sustainable growth of Montana's economy."
-- Webb Brown, President/CEO, Montana Chamber of Commerce
“Montana’s farming and ranching families need pro-business, pro-agriculture representatives like you in order to maintain profitability and viability.”
-– Pat Goggins, Chair, Montana Agricultural PAC
“The Montana Farm Bureau is proud to endorse Wendy Warburton for House District 34. Representative Warburton’s agricultural background and voting record in the last legislature led to many positives outcomes for agriculture."
-- John Youngberg, Vice President of Governmental Affairs, Montana Farm Bureau
“Warburton is endorsed by MSSA as clearly the best candidate in the HD 34 General Election contest to represent gun owners and hunters. MSSA highly recommends Warburton to the voters of HD 34 in the General Election. MSSA thinks the right to keep and bear arms and hunting are important. Those voters in Montana who agree with MSSA about this important right should know that Warburton will certainly be the best General Election candidate to represent our shared convictions.
Warburton is one of only two candidates for the Montana Legislature who received an A+ from MSSA, a grade MSSA awards only to incumbent legislators with a perfect voting record on MSSA-tracked issues, and who has also successfully carried a bill at the request of MSSA.”
-- Gary Marbut, President, Montana Shooting Sports Association
Wendy's opponent Dana Sapp-Siedel failed to send us any information
The only things we know about Siedel come from her campaign materials and radio ads She is a mother, nurse, and they lives on her husband’s family farm. From what we hear around town she is a delightful person and is well thought of. She says she will represent everyone in her district to the best of her ability and thinks there should be some expansion of healthcare to cure the deficiencies she sees in her career as a nurse
The folks at the Corrector have noticed that the Democrats seem to be concentrating what little effort they are putting forth in this election to defeating Warburton. Hill County Democrat Central Committeeman Bill Thackeray has written countless letters to the editor bemoaning Wendy's right-to-life stances, former Democrat chairwoman Debi Friede ran a failed attempt to boycott a local business that had the audacity to display a Warburton Pro-Life flyer, and on and on. There was quite a fray early on in this election about Wendy voting NO numerous times to HB2 which funds all of state government and tried to link that NO vote as a vote against Northern, kid’s health-care, motherhood and Americanism itself. Of course this wasn’t overly successful because any idiot knows that HB 2 is the funding bill that got voted on over 60 times before it finally passed. Even at the final vote there was still an increase in funding at most agencies and Warburton again voted NO to protect her constituents from any further tax increases.
To tell you the truth I like the fact that someone dared to buck the party trends and voted NO to yet another bloated budget but that is just me – an over-taxed Havre citizen. I am definitely not in favor of anymore expansion of health-care at taxpayer expense so I am staying with Incumbent Warburton this election as I think she has done a remarkable job and deserves another term
I received my ballot in the mail today so it’s time to make some decisions about who are the best candidates. I also received the following from Hill County Commissioner District 2 candidate Jeff LaVoi. Sadly I didn’t receive any information about his opponent Jim Catt but I will review the information on his campaign advertisements after the information from LaVoi
My name is Jeff LaVoi and I am a candidate for Hill County Commissioner, Dist 2.
I am running as an independent candidate, not because I have anything against either party, but simply because I believe, on the county level, a candidate should be chosen by their qualifications rather than party affiliation only.
Name: Jeff LaVoi Born: Fosston, Minnesota 1945 Background: Raised on small diversified farm High School: 1963 graduate of Fosston High School Military: Served 4 years in United States Navy 1964-1967 College: Graduate of University of Minnesota,Crookston, Ag Business Major Family: Wife Kathy(a histologist at NMH), Seven children, Heidi, Mark, Renee, Bobbi Jo, John, Sarah, Kurt. Five Grandchildren, one Great Grandchild (Nest is now empty) Religion: Have personal relationship with Jesus Christ, teach adult Sunday School class at Church of God in Big Sandy. Was on board of KXEI, our Christian Radio station, when it went on the air 25 years ago. Career: 42 Years in Farm Equipment Business. 30 of those years as Partner/Gen. Manager of John Deere dealerships, starting in Crookston, Minn. as small minority ownership and manager. In 1981 the opportunity came to be full partner and manager of Havre Implement and in 1986, my partner and I purchased the dealer ship in Grand Forks, N.D. I retired at the end of 1997 and purchased a small ranch in the Bears Paw Mts.(A childhood dream). Sitting around with little to do is not my style so I took a job as salesman for Moodie Implement, who now owned the store in Havre. The past 11 years have been spent at this job and still going. Summation: Understanding the workings of a business, budgets, payrolls, employee relationships. benefits, taxes, growth opportunities, to name a few, will be a great benefit as Commissioner.
Dealing with economic problems, such as rising expenses, interest rates, government regulations, and the forces of nature such as drought or floods, have all been experienced plus more. You learn out of necessity to be a problem solver.
I believe one of the greatest things I've learned over the past 42 years is how to deal with people. You meet many different personalities. Learning how to listen, diffusing volatile situations, solving problems, genuinely caring, are all very important. After all "No one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care".
Our County is facing some difficult situations. Annexation, a drop in gas/oil exploration, are just a couple of ways county revenue will decrease. There are a number of lawsuits, some still pending, that always cause problems and expense. I do believe there have been some shortcuts taken , and perhaps some individual rights abused that have brought on these lawsuits. There has also been conflict between the City Of Havre and Hill County. We need qualified leadership to work out these areas of conflict and avoid them in the future. Hill County has a great deal to offer and if we all work together we can not only survive but thrive. I would like as your next County Commissioner to be a part of our future success.
Signed;
Jeff LaVoi
Now for his opponent, Jim Catt. What is there really to say?
Jim’s campaign literatures main theme is that he will be “Connecting resources to needs” whatever that may mean and his ads in the paper say he will focus on “Reconnecting with all people, towns and cities in Hill County” Jim’s radio ad claims that he has over 25 years experience in county government and that he has business experience. Jim also stated during the primary forum that he wants to "partner" with RockyBoy to try and obtain some grants for the county.
From what I can ascertain Jim is indeed a very nice man and is always willing to help a friend in need. I don’t think there are allot of folks that don’t like the man. He is friendly, outgoing, and a rather pleasant person to be around but I think his “experience” claims are relatively fictitious.
In reality Jim’s county government “experience” has been serving on the county planning board that meets once per month for an hour or so. From what I can find out about Jim he worked for the railroad until he suffered a disabling back injury and received a settlement from the railroad. Shortly after his settlement he had a miraculous recovery and started doing landscaping and pouring concrete driveways and sidewalks around town which is what he says is his business experience
If you were to look up these two candidates campaign reports you will also see that Jim is nearly 100% personally financed. I will say that he is putting his money where his mouth is as he is apparently paying for all his campaign expenses himself or does he have a rich uncle someplace?
Since Jim chose not to send us any additional information there isn’t much else to say. It is obvious to me that Lavoi is the better choice in this race. I like the fact that he refuses to align himself with either party and is running as an Independent not beholding to any political apparatus in this town. Considering that the paper reported just this week that the county budget runs in excess of 5 million dollars per year and they are having budget problems to the point of even having to look at laying off county employees we can’t afford to vote for anyone other than a person with a strong successful business background
Well I must admit my wife is right about me. I procrastinate and don’t always follow through in a timely fashion. With that being said I would like to submit the following as the first of the slightly belated candidate profiles.
I have decided to start with one of the least understood races in Montana which is the office of Public Service Commissioner. In our area the candidates for the District 1 seat on the PSC are Republican Travis Kavulla and Democrat Don Ryan. Both candidates are from Great Falls and this district extends from Great Falls to the North Dakota border encompassing 19 counties and the cities of Havre, Shelby, Lewistown, Glasgow, Glendive and Sidney. Current District 1 Commissioner Greg Jergeson has termed out and cannot seek re-election. The PSC oversees energy, Telecom, water/sewer, transportation and pipeline safety.
Why is this race important? These are the guys that set our energy policies and I don’t know about you but that affects a big portion of my pocketbook. The former Senator from District 10 Don Ryan is claiming (like most candidates) that he will be a strong voice for Montana. He advocates we “use all of our resources, coal, gas, wind, solar, geothermal, bio-mass and water to become the energy supplier to the nation, Just how, he doesn’t elaborate on. What throws up the flag of caution with me on supporting Don Ryan was the recent endorsement of Ray Peck. Ray said it is important to the voters that Don has been a life-long Democrat because he claims that considering this fact Don would have voted against SB390 which you may recall deregulated the power industry. Is that really so Ray? Don’s brother Bill did vote for de-regulation so who is really to know? Then, as if it wasn’t bad enough to secure the endorsement of Ray Peck along comes current PSC commissioner Greg Jergeson in a letter to the editor last Monday saying Kavulla was recruited to run for this office by none other than the “outspoken and ultraconservative” Republican commissioner Brad Molnar. Considering that Molnar and Kavulla’s primary opponent Jerry Black served in the legislature together and are friends I highly doubt the truthfulness of that statement. What Jergeson fails to mention in his glowing endorsement of Don Ryan is the fact that he himself recruited Scoby Democrat Julie French to run against Ryan in the primary because he detested Ryan. Funny how being the final guy with the big D on your forehead all of a sudden makes him now the best choice.
I listened to a stump speech given by Mr. Kavulla where he was talking about his campaign and the fact that he has logged over 24,000 miles working to get this job and when Mr. Ryan was asked why he hasn’t been working hard to get this position his response in the Billings Gazette was that he has a 7 to 5 job. What is that job you ask? Mr. Ryan is the assistant to his wife in the operation of a daycare in Great Falls. It would appear to me that Mr. Ryan may be qualified to discern the difference between “Huggies” and Pampers” but how is he really qualified for this post? It looks like what is really happening is that Ryan is just seeking a “position” to get away from the ”little darlings” in his wife’s business.
Just for an example of his mind set let’s take a look at some of the bills Mr. Ryan sponsored in his career in the Senate. He sponsored an excise tax of 5 cents per can on soda in the 2005 session, he introduced a bill (SB2) in 2007 which would have mandated that all restrooms open to the public must have paper towel dispensers instead of the air dryers, and on and on with similar such nonsense. Now all of a sudden Don wants you to think he is on the side “of the people” even though he attempted to add costs to the consumer at every turn.
What about the “other guy”? Travis Kavulla is a graduate of Harvard and I first noticed him when the City of Great Falls Electric City Power joined with the group attempting to build the Highwood generating plant. Every time I heard Mr. Kavulla speak he talked with authority and knowledge of the subject. I will confess though that I doubt he knows one damn thing about diapers or paper towel dispensers. This race is so lopsided it is nearly embarrassing for me to even try to compare the lackluster Ryan to Kavulla. Below is a clip of a Kavulla campaign ad. You be the judge
The campaign ads have been bombarding my radio listening pleasure the last week or so for the local candidate promotions and some of them sound pretty good.TheTribune reported yesterday about a great political television ad called “Mourning in America” that I thought was very interesting when it is compared to a similar television ad that President Reagan ran in his re-election campaign back in 1984.They both were on utube and are posted here so tell me what you think
Reagan 1984 "Morning in America"
2010 "Mourning in America"
Thanks to the Great Falls Tribune for pointing this ad out.
It wasn’t too long ago when we were hearing indignation from the likes of Tretheway, Snider, Thackeray and the rest of academics that were offended because they had to endure a 2 minute prayer at the state sanctioned college commencement. I have waited for over a week now and I have not hear one peep from anyone at this blog about President Obama having sought the help of thousands of faith-based pastors and people to preach the gospel of Obama Care to their congregations. Is preaching Obama Care from the pulpit somehow different than hearing a prayer at a secular graduation? Is hearing a sermon on the wonders of this nationalized health plan in our places of worship less offensive than when Representative Warburton spoke from the pulpit on the right to life topic? Obama “instructed faith leaders to use their perches of power” to convey his message to their congregations according to Politico.com. See the whole article here.
I guess our local liberals are all like former Democrat Chairman Boycotter Friede. It is all about to which political party they pledge allegiance to whether or not something can be deemed offensive.
We have been a little slow in getting our posts up the past few weeks and we apologize to those of you that have sent us tips that we haven’t gotten around to researching yet. We hope to get things back on track this week. As was pointed out to us last night when we all got together there is only about a month left until the election in November and in reality only a couple of weeks of campaign time left until we can vote absentee.
Beginning next weekend the Corrector will be running articles from/or about the candidates such as profiles etc so our readers can make some sort of comparision between the offerings. We tried this in the past without a great response from the candidates themselves so for the General election we again offer the candidates the opportunity to submit a profile/campaign letter/a why you should vote for me post/ etc which will be posted exactly as you have written it.
In the event that we again don’t get a response from some of the candidates we won’t let it get us down but will rather just compile a profile for the candidate ourselves which may or may not be as flatering as if they did it themselves. If any of our readers have any thoughts with facts about any of the candidates just shoot us an e-mail.
We encourage the candidates to take advantage of our Free campaign advertisement opportunity
