False claims this election season

Editor:

Two letters to the editor have claimed that Democrats were unruly and disruptive — even profane — when they attended a rally that Republican U.S. Senate candidate Denny Rehberg held in downtown Havre. These claims are nonsense. We quietly held signs as Rehberg spoke. There was no yelling or other disruptive activity. No cussing either.

We were there to call attention to the huge sums of out-of-state money being spent to influence the Montana electorate, particularly on Rehberg's behalf.

Now, if you didn't attend the event, you might think that what those two letters alleged was true.

That's how a lot of campaigning has been in this election season: Many ads are making false or misleading statements in hopes that registered voters will believe what they say. Millions of dollars have been spent in Montana to spread false claims about U.S. Sen. Jon Tester and other Democratic candidates.

In fact, the amount of lying that's been going on is enough to make some people choose not to vote, thinking that both major political parties have been equally responsible for distortions of truth and outright lies. I can assure you that is not the case.

But don't simply believe what I say. Responsible voters will take the time to do the research, depending on objective sources.

I'll simply ask you to keep two things in mind: 1) Don't be surprised if the dramatic shift of wealth to the richest people in this country escalates even more if you vote against your own best interests and back the Republican cause. 2) If you support Social Security, Medicare, public education and a safety net for the country's poorest people, please make sure you vote this time. That is what's at stake in this election.

Karen Datko

Havre