Is Jon Tester A Real Montanan?
Is Jon Tester a real Montanan?
To answer the question, let’s first agree that a real Montanan is one who cares about Montana and fights for Montana. So, is Jon Tester a real Montanan?
Case in point – an article in the Washington Times by Valerie Richardson points out that Jon Tester abandoned the people of Montana:
“Senate Republicans were buoyant when two democrats joined with them in passing a pro-Keystone XL amendment as part of the overnight marathon budget debate, but GOP elation was short-lived.
After voting for the measure to support the pipeline, Sens. Joe Manchin and Jon Tester voted against it, joining the rest of the democratic caucus early Friday in passing an amendment by Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer to strip the Keystone XL language from the budget resolution.
What frustrated supporters is that a vote from either Mr. Manchin or Mr. Tester would have saved the Keystone amendment, sponsored by Sen. Steve Daines, Montana Republican, aimed at boosting legislation to authorize the pipeline after President Biden killed it on his first day in office.“
Additionally, two other amendments, taking out the proposal that would have prevented checks going to illegal aliens and support for fracking, were killed thanks in large part to Tester:
“Mr. Manchin and Mr. Tester voted in favor of both those amendments as well as the Keystone XL measure, but all three amendments were wiped out by Mr. Schumer’s proposal, which passed 51-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris representing the tie-breaker.“
I will concede that Senator Manchin doesn’t give a tinker’s damn about Montana, but Tester should. That’s if he is a real Montanan.
Why should this be important to all Montanans? Because the 258 mile portion of the Keystone XL pipeline that would have run through north-east Montana would have generated $63M in tax revenue annually for Montana. That revenue would have gone to schools, healthcare, public safety, and other valuable state programs.
At the time, Tester spokesperson Sarah Feldman said the Montana Democrat, “has and continues to support the Keystone pipeline, and any statement to the contrary is incorrect”. That’s total BS. When it came time to stand up for Montana, or choose to support Senator Schumer and party, Tester’s choice was Schumer, who probably doesn’t even know where Montana is.
So goodbye $63M in annual tax revenue, and many good-paying jobs for real Montanans.