Montana Gov. Mentioned As 2008 Contender

[Judi Lynn]

Montana Gov. Mentioned As 2008 Contender

Wednesday July 20, 2005 6:16 PM


By BOB ANEZ

Associated Press Writer

HELENA, Mont. (AP) - Gov. Brian Schweitzer sits in his Capitol office, scanning a recent Roll Call article in which pundits float his name as a possible presidential contender. They say the ``rancher-politician from Big Sky Country'' might be the Democrats' ``best shot to take back the White House.'' Schweitzer tosses the article aside. ``These people are kooky,'' he says.

Schweitzer, in office barely 200 days, has drawn unusual attention for the new chief executive of a state usually on the sidelines when it comes to national politics.

His victory as a Democrat in a historically Republican stronghold helped bring him to the attention of Democratic Party leaders. Smarting from their losses in 2004, the Democrats have been looking to successful candidates in typically ``red'' states, hoping to find a winning strategy.

``He is no-nonsense. He understands fiscal concerns,'' said Howard Dean, Democratic National Committee chairman. ``He has a winning formula for Democrats. He is an example of how you win elections in the West.''
(snip/...)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5154605,00.html

[NYCGirl]

1. We could do a whole lot worse. Schweitzer is great! NT

[montanacowboy]

2. This IS the guy for 2008

Love this guy! he even takes his dog to work with him - he takes NO repuke prisoners - he says it like it is and he CAN win!

[sled]

3. My hope...

His first move would be to put his boot, up Lieberman's ass...kick some ass, & take some names...:kick:

[Larkspur]

4. I like Schweitzer a lot, but it's too early for him for Prez in 2008

He needs to prove that he can manage the governorship well for his first term and it would be nice if he could win re-election.

What Schweitzer offers Democrats as a whole is what Howard Dean sees -- the formula that Dems can use to win in "Red" states and nationally.

Schweitzer is a "Centrist" in Howard Dean's mold, not the DLC mold, so he's conservative in some areas, like taxes and gay marriage, and progressive in others, like on women's reproductive rights and the environment.

I love Schweitzer's comment about staying in Washington D.C.
"If I stay in Washington for more than 72 hours, I have to bathe myself in the same stuff I use when my dog gets into a fight with a skunk."

[maxsolomon]

8. you could make the same argument about *

his experience in government prior to 2000 was minimal. governor of texas? puh-leez.

if bush can be president, a retarded monkey can be president. schwietzer has it all over a retarded monkey.

governor of montana is a tough job - those people are CRAZY. christian identity survivalist militia i-shot-you-cuz-you-was-on-mah-property crazy.

[havocmom]

16. um, hello, I'm in Montana and I don't know who the flying fig you are

talkin about. The real nut cases I have met here are immigrants from other places: Texas, California, Michigan, Missouri and Oklahoma for starters.

[maxsolomon]

21. my brother lived in whitefish & he was vilified as a green nazi

by john stokes, who runs z600 am in bigfork. yes he's an emigrant. from snohomish co. washington. where we also have bad craziness.

i love montana, but do you deny montana has crazies? the unabomber lived there! the west has more crazies per capita because it attracts them like navels attract lint.

my bro lives in missoula now, soon to move to bozeman. his wife grew up in sydney. i've been there enough to know that politically, after governor judy bonehead, schweitzer is like the dawn of a new enlightenment.

[havocmom]

22. Unibomber was yet ANOTHER transplant from somewhere else

There are loons everywhere. I grew up in California and lived 16 years in AZ... don't get me started on loons.

[maxsolomon]

32. so it has to be a native of that state to qualify?

you are not a native. why so defensive?

[havocmom]

34. why so insistant on inferring people in Montana are nuts?

I bet we have more writers per capita than your state ;)

[havocmom]

35. Is it defensive to refute ignorant, generalizing and bigoted statements

like "governor of montana is a tough job - those people are CRAZY. christian identity survivalist militia i-shot-you-cuz-you-was-on-mah-property crazy." ?

I see it as raising the level of awareness and not putting up with bigoted remarks which hold a population up to ridicule. Would you sit still for someone making the comment quoted above if we substitute terms which referred to a particular racial or ethnic group? I know Skinner and the mods wouldn't tolerate it! Why, it would be down right UN-progressive!

Making demeaning statements about the population of a particular area is not helpful to solving the problems we face as a NATIONAL people.
When I see it being done, I throw a flag and call foul.

Why shouldn't I? There are saints and sinners in all 50 states. When you pick on one state, expect to get some lip from some of us.

[sled]

24. So...

Which state has a lock on "enlightenment", in your opinion, might I ask??? Please "enlighten" the rest of us, in the other 49 state asylums...

[maxsolomon]

31. oh, sweet jesus. so defensive!

i live in washington, home of the green river killer & ted bundy. we don't have a lock on enlightenment. & observing the recent history of america, no place does. maybe vermont. i dunno.

but speaking as a midwest native, the entire american west is filled with anomie & alienation. what's more, people like it that way. so don't claim that montana is a beacon of reason in a dark world.

my only point was this: if schweitzer can get something done in a state that is as hostile to liberalism as montana has been in the last 15 years, that's impressive. if he's presidential material, why not now?

but you had to go & see it as an attack on your hometown pride...

[sled]

33. Thank you...

Not being defensive, just trying to find which state is now the most "enlightened", cause I'd like to move there. Fact is, after living in both the west & the east, the west definitely doesn't have a lock on "crazies"...not by a long shot...

In my experience, it relies mostly on who gets to define "crazy", anyway, & currently defines anyone who doesn't just follow the flock, off a cliff...too often any heretic is called "crazy", as the flock deems necessary.

In my opinion, folks that see Jesus, in their toast, are nuttier than nine kinds of hell, but now it's rapidly becoming mainstream, to believe any blot is a fucking miracle, something divine...so I'm a heretic, a very proud heretic, a very proud, "crazy" heretic, indeed...I believe what my senses tell me is real...a Jeffersonian school of thought, so to speak, not someone else's myths...that's heresy, & in modern America, "crazy" talk...I confess, guilty as charged...so wherever I live, count on, at least, one "crazy" in the hood, east, west, north, or south...

[havocmom]

36. Montana voted for a Dem governor AND passed a Medical Marijuana

intuitive. We also did not allow gay marriages. Win some, lose some. But it shows that we are not the solid block of "crazies" you referred to earlier. Your remarks are a bit more than just "an attack on your hometown pride..." they are bigoted and offensive as such, so expect to get some flack when you make such remarks about a whole population based on the fact that a few people called your brother a green nazi.

Geeze, do some good and take that out on Rush. He is the guy who puts phrases like that into the NATIONAL dialog.

[krkaufman]

5. Isn't that where David Sirota ran off to...?

To support Schweitzer's run?

[Wetzelbill]

15. Yeah, Sirota lives in Helena now

It's also why I'm moving back too. Now that we have a good Governor, control of the Lege and maybe another Dem Senator next year, MT is looking better than ever.

[krkaufman]

25. Wow. Great to hear.

Definitely need to do some research to find out what's causing the shift.

[Judi Lynn]

6. Montana Gov. Mentioned As 2008 Contender

Montana Gov. Mentioned As 2008 Contender

By BOB ANEZ
The Associated Press
Wednesday, July 20, 2005; 1:14 PM

HELENA, Mont. -- Gov. Brian Schweitzer sits in his Capitol office, scanning a recent Roll Call article in which pundits float his name as a possible presidential contender. They say the "rancher-politician from Big Sky Country" might be the Democrats' "best shot to take back the White House." Schweitzer tosses the article aside. "These people are kooky," he says.

Schweitzer, in office barely 200 days, has drawn unusual attention for the new chief executive of a state usually on the sidelines when it comes to national politics.

His victory as a Democrat in a historically Republican stronghold helped bring him to the attention of Democratic Party leaders. Smarting from their losses in 2004, the Democrats have been looking to successful candidates in typically "red" states, hoping to find a winning strategy.

"He is no-nonsense. He understands fiscal concerns," said Howard Dean, Democratic National Committee chairman. "He has a winning formula for Democrats. He is an example of how you win elections in the West."

Schweitzer had certain built-in advantages in 2004: He ran as a centrist against a weaker Republican candidate, and he followed a very unpopular outgoing GOP governor. But political observers also see a lot of charisma.
(snip/...)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/20/AR2005072001198.html
(Free registration required)

[Straight Shooter]

7. From what I've seen, I am soooo hoping he'll run.

He's got it all, baby.

Oooh, look at the cute border collie :)

[WI_DEM]

9. he may not be the presidential nominee but would make a very

intriguing vp nominee.

[Robert Oak]

10. heard him on CNN, got my attention fast

Straight talking. Let's' find out more about him!

We need someone who can lead/cut through the hypnotic trance half of America is in.

[Ediacara]

11. I highly doubt he'll run for president in 2008

He's won ONE election ever. Even Bush was re-elected as TX governor in 1998. He's not ready to be president and he knows it

That being said, every time he speaks, he IS making a campaign speach. I don't know if he's trying to help dems in the 2006 election, or helping his own re-election campaign. Schweitzer DOES want to be president, despite his skunk remedy jokes, I just don't think he feels 2008 is enough time.

BUT, if he were asked to be VP in 2008, I don't see him turning it down.

[Parche]

13. montana

Why doesnt he run for congress or senator first
we need all we can get now

[Wetzelbill]

14. He ran for Senate in 2000

Barely missed it.

After 2006, MT may very well have two Democratic Senators anyway, as Jon Tester should beat Conrad Burns, and Senior Senator Max Baucus is a Dem. (although it's getting hard to tell.) Plus, Schweitzer just got elected. His term limits wouldn't expire until 2012.

[havocmom]

18. And after 16 years of GOP governors making a mess of things, he needs

time to sort it all out and fix the disaster left by the likes of Marc Racicot. When he does that, he will have a record to point to in a national campaign.

Meanwhile, he is getting his digs in WHILE looking after the best interests of the state. Taking on the neocons and DOD about sending the Guard overseas to cover for an ill-planned invasion with not enough active duty US Military to carry out an occupation. He is beating them about that, pointing out the Guard is supposed to be in their home states to handle emergencies, like fire season in the fourth largest state. Lot of area to protect and a small population to do it. He makes points at home when he berates the Feds for sending most of our Guard and all but one of our helicopters to Iraq instead of keeping them home protecting THE HOMELAND.

He has some cajones, a great, friendly persona and a brain way bigger than most. His sense of humor serves well too.

[Wetzelbill]

19. you got that right, Havocmom

Couldn't agree more. That's why I'm moving back. :)

[Rich Hunt]

20. right

Montana just got him - now they want to take him away?

Fact is - we need these governors.

[realms]

23. Play to win

I don't think we democrats should run anyone who's in congress. There's just too much material for the right wing to distort, and they have the money to do that.

[ruggerson]

27. No, if he becomes a Senator, he will never be Pres

[ruggerson]

28. Carter ran for President after one term in Georgia n/t

[FreeStateDemocrat]

12. Room for all, show us what you've got to win it.

[Rainscents]

17. I hardly know this guy, however, little that I hear of him, I really like

him! I especially liked about "Tie" ordeal few months ago. I think, people like him would get lot of republicans voting for him!

[cubschicago]

26. I've been saying this since October of 2004

I'm glad other people are catching on.

[PartyPooper]

29. Those pictures of his family, dog, and house make him look genuine

to me. Gee, I bet he even rides horses, too. :D

The folks in Crawford and at the WH could prolly learn a thing or two from this guy.

:thumbsup:

[Lorien]

30. More:

"Roll Call, the Capitol Hill newspaper, recently referred to Schweitzer as a ``blunt-speaking, gun-toting, scotch-swilling governor'' - the last a reference to news photos of him downing a shot at the reopening of a landmark bar in Butte.

Schweitzer has vowed to veto tax increases, favors abortion rights and opposes gay marriage and gun control. He has been a leader in promoting lower prescription drug prices and supports ethanol production."

(snip)

Something for everyone to like or something for everyone to hate, depending on your point of view.

[woosh]

37. He's anti gun-control and antil gay-marriage

He could with those stands, the question is whether we can live with that.

Neither are my issues, but I have a hard time with anti-gay legislation: I'm not sure if he takes it that far.