Republicans endorse Tuss, Tester

Editors note: This version includes a comment from Tim Sheehy campaign spokesperson Jackie O’Brien that was received after the printing deadline for this edition. Watch for more in next week’s Havre Weekly Chronicle.

Two local politicians have received unusual endorsements, endorsements from major Montana Republicans.

Former Montana Gov., Attorney General and Republican National Committee Chair Marc Racicot has endorsed Rep. Paul Tuss, D-Havre, in his race to retain his seat in a race against Republican former Rep. Ed Hill of Havre, who toss defeated in the 2022 election.

He and a large group of Montana Republicans also have endorsed Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., in the Big Sandy-area farmer’s bid for a fourth term in Congress in his race against Republican challenger Tim Sheehy, who moved to Montana and started businesses in the state after he left the U.S. Navy SEALS.

Racicot told Havre Weekly Chronicle Tuesday that he is supporting Tuss and Tester because he has known them both for decades, Tester for more than 30 years and Tuss for 25 or more, and believes they meet his top priority in supporting a candidate, that they have a desire to help the public good, the good of the state and the good of the nation.

Ed Hill did not return a call from the Havre Weekly Chronicle Tuesday morning before Tuesday afternoon’s press deadline.

In a release last Thursday announcing his endorsement, Racicot said Tuss meets what he called in an interview his hierarchy of serving the public.

“I have known Paul for the past quarter century and have observed his commitment to serving Montana, be it in his role as economic developer along the Hi-Line, his tenure as a member of the Board of Regents or in his current capacity as a member of the Legislature,” Racicot said. “It is apparent to me he executes the duties of his office with fidelity and puts the interests of his constituents and our state ahead of those associated with his party.”

Tuss said he was honored and humbled to have the support of Racicot, who served as a Republican as Montana attorney general of Montana 1989-1993, as governor from 1993 to 2001 and as chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2002-2004. He now is chairman of the board of directors at the Mansfield Center at the University of Montana.

“I am honored and humbled to have the support of Gov. Racicot. His lengthy and distinguished public service career in Montana is only eclipsed by his genuine desire for bipartisan cooperation, fealty to our state’s constitution and public policies that truly serve the interests of Montana citizens,” Tuss said. “Gov. Racicot has put aside partisan labels and understands the absolute importance of electing individuals to public office interested in moving our state forward instead of those focused on partisanship and gridlock.”

Tuss has served as executive director of Bear Paw Development Corp. for nearly 24 years, is former chair of the Montana Board of Regents, is a board member for the National Association of Development Organizations and serves as a member of the Appropriations Committee and Long Range Planning Subcommittee of the Montana House of Representatives.

Racicot — and the former Republican president of the Montana Senate, Montana secretary of state and candidate for governor Bob Brown — made similar comments about Tester.

Brown and Racicot, along with a list of Montana Republicans including former state legislator Mallerie Stromswald from Yellowstone County, former Great Falls Mayor Mike Winters, former Montana Republican Party Chair and Lewis and Clark County Commissioner Susan Good-Geise and Columbia Falls City Council member and veteran Mike Shepard are co-chairs of Republicans for Tester.

Other co-chairs of the group are former George W. Bush appointee and veteran Mick Ringsak of Butte, Vietnam veteran Terry Baker of Kalispell, state Sen, Terry Vermeire of Anaconda, Fort Peck Town Council member Justin Schaaf, former Gallatin County Commissioner Don Seifert of Bozeman, former state legislator Dan Hurwitz of Clyde Park, Fort Belknap Tribal Councilwoman and rancher Patty Quisno, former Fort Belknap Tribal Councilman and veteran Warren Morin, and former Montana state Senate Republican Chief of Staff Chuck Butler of Helena.

“Montana will always come first for me — and I will take on anyone, from any party, to defend our state,” Tester said in a press release Aug. 6 about the endorsement. “I’m honored to have the support of Montana Republicans who have stood with me to fight for our veterans, protect our freedoms, and keep the government out of our personal lives. Montanans didn’t send me to Washington to play politics, they sent me to deliver results — and together we’re going to win this election and keep fighting to keep Montana strong.”

Tim Sheehy did not respond to an email to his campaign Monday seeking comment until after this week’s printing deadline, but the response is included in this online version.

“‘Republicans for Tester’ makes about as much sense as a jumbo shrimp — ‘Two-Faced Tester’ has made a career of serving at the pleasure of New York’s Chuck Schumer to advance their ‘Montana Last’ agenda while pretending to be somebody he's not,” Sheehy campaign spokesperson Jackie O’Brien said Wednesday. “The truth is, Jon Tester is far-left, loyal Democrat who votes for the Biden-Harris agenda 95% of the time, loves Kamala Harris, hates President (Donald) Trump, and actively works against everything the America First movement believes in. A vote for Sheehy is a vote for President Trump’s commonsense America First agenda; a vote for Tester is a vote for four more years of the failed Biden-Harris disaster.”

One of the co-chairs of Republicans for Tester, Chairman of the Milk River Joint Board of Control Wade I. Jones, essentially said the opposite in last week’s press elase

“I’m an irrigated farmer from Malta, and I’m going to be voting for Donald Trump this fall. I’m also proud to vote for Sen. Tester,” Jones said. “I’ve been working on fixing the St. Mary’s irrigation system for 21 years, and Jon Tester is the only one to bring actual dollars to modernize this piece of critical infrastructure. Jon’s the real deal.”

Racicot said in an interview Tuesday that, from the first days that Tester “darkened the doors of the Capitol,” he appreciated how Tester approached the issues, how he studied and learned about the issues and how he tried to help the people he represented in the state Senate and that he believes that means all the people, not just the people who voted for him.

“For going on three decades I’ve known and worked with Jon Tester as he has tirelessly set about to serve all Montanans, Democrats and Republicans alike. Jon has, without exception, executed his duties with an elevated focus upon the public good,” Racicot said in last week’s press release. “Not unexpectedly, it has always been people, not parties, who have come first with Jon Tester. I’m proud to support our senior senator because I’m absolutely confident he’ll continue to protect and defend our liberty and our Montana way of life.”

Brown made similar comments in the release.

“I’ve personally known Jon Tester for almost thirty years, and I’ve always known him to be the genuine article. He’s Montanan through and through,” Brown said. “He will always stand up to his party to do what’s right for the state. I served as Montana’s Republican Secretary of state and I know what our state needs. I trust Jon to keep fighting to secure the border, help our veterans, and relentlessly defend our Second Amendment rights. This election is about Montana, and Jon is the right choice for our state.”

Another co-chair said, despite their differences, he is supporting Tester.

“I trust Jon. I served as mayor of Great Falls, not too far from Jon’s farm in Big Sandy, and I’m a Republican,” former Great Falls Mayor Mike Winters said in the release. “I may not always see eye to eye with Jon on every issue, but I know he’ll always talk straight with me – and he’s proven that he will always fight for Montana’s best interests. I know I can count on Jon, and that’s why Jon can count on me as a Republican to vote for him.”

Another co-chair of the group said Tester works for the state.

“Montana might be changing, but Jon Tester’s commitment to our state never has. As a Republican City Council Member from Columbia Falls, a veteran, and past Commander of two American Legion posts, I’ve seen Jon Tester’s service up close and know that he recognizes the numerous problems facing Montana veterans,” Columbia Falls City Council member and veteran Mike Shepard said in the release. “He answered the call and wrote and passed legislation to transform veterans’ care in this county. Whether it’s his Commander John Scott Hannon Act to get us the mental health care we need or his PACT Act to address toxic exposure, Jon Tester is the only member of our delegation fighting day in and day out for Montana veterans. He is relentless, which is why I’m proud to support Jon Tester and endorse him for re-election.”

Brown said in an interview with Havre Weekly Chronicle Monday that he believes Tester is “the genuine article,” a Montanan through-and-through.

“There’s nobody more fundamentally Montanan that Jon Tester,” Brown said, adding that Tester understands what people are talking about, what the issues are.

“And that’s important in our little state, to have a senator that’s really tuned into us, who completely understands us,” Brown said.