E-City Beat emailed local Montana legislative candidates who are in primaries requesting responses to three questions, which you’ll see below. Ballots for the June primary are currently arriving in mailboxes.
Today we are publishing responses from GOP candidates for SD 10, Steve Fitzpatrick and Jeni Dodd. Ms. Dodd didn’t include a photo with her response. Stay tuned this week for more candidate responses.
Steve Fitzpatrick
Why Are You Running for The Office?
I am running for reelection because I want to make Montana the best place to live, start a business, and raise a family. Montana is facing some serious challenges. We need leaders who have the experience and willingness to do the right thing to move Montana forward.
In politics today, we spend too much time asking whether a political party or special interest wins or loses. We need to stop that. I believe we should ask whether the people of Montana win or lose.
I believe in the importance of working together to find solutions to the challenges we face. In the 2019 session, I worked with a broad coalition of legislators to pass meaningful legislation to improve access to healthcare and to lower the cost of prescription drugs, to protect property and water rights, and to improve our business environment. In total, I sponsored and passed 31 pieces of legislation, the most of any legislator.
If reelected, I will continue to work with others to find solutions to the problems we face. You can count on me to represent you and put the interests of Montanans first.
Why are You Running as a Republican?
I am a Republican because I believe in the core values – limited government, improved economic opportunity, fiscally responsible government, and the belief in the dignity and worth of every individual — which have guided our party for over 150 years.
As your Senator, I have worked to eliminate unnecessary regulation, to improve opportunities for Montana businesses, and to encourage responsible natural resource development.
I believe in the importance of being a good steward of public resources. The Legislature should only spend for money for services we actually need and never tolerate any waste, fraud, or abuse in state government.
I believe in the importance of agriculture, property rights, and Second Amendment rights and in ensuring all Montanans have access to affordable, quality healthcare. As your Senator, I will continue to work to improve Montana and to ensure a better future for you and your family.
What Makes You the Best Candidate in the Race?
I am the candidate who will represent you, not the special interests or the party bosses. I have a conservative voting record and a proven record of working to find common sense solutions. As your Senator, I will do what is best for the people of Cascade County.
I have been named a Montana Chamber of Commerce Champion of Business, have an “A” rating from the Montana Farm Bureau Federation, and a 100% score with the Montana Family Foundation. However, this election is about more than voting records. It is about electing a person who represents the values of the district.
I believe in the importance of hard work, personal responsibility, and living within our means. I will support legislation which protects and enhances our community and the State of Montana. I will not support legislation that does otherwise. You can count of me to stand up for better jobs and a strong economy, improved access to healthcare, fiscally responsible government, and a better future for Montana.
Jeni Dodd
Why are you running for the office?
I’ve achieved some results as a local activist, but I believe I can accomplish more as a legislator helping form policy, rather than merely opposing or defending existing policy. What I hope to accomplish is legislation that will do the following: reduce government overreach, particularly that which affects small businesses/independent contractors; shrink government waste; protect and defend our inalienable rights; decrease the tax burden on Montana residents; and provide for private property rights protections, including protections from regulatory takings such as unreasonable restrictions and ordinances. I would also examine what is and isn’t working well for our state and push for change, but change that is consistent with our founding documents.
Why are you running as a Republican?
I’m running as a Republican because I share the values stated in our party’s platform and will uphold those values. I also believe that the Republican party is more aligned with our Constitutional Republic. Ben Franklin was right when he stated, “A Republic, if you can keep it.” The Republican party seems to want to “keep it.”
I’m also running because it’s been disappointing to me to see local members of our party, the “Solutions Caucus,” consistently vote against Republican and Constitutional values in the Montana Legislature. It seems to me that the Solutions Caucus, in joining with Democrats, have abandoned both critical thinking and the party platform. My opponent is a leading member of that caucus. Republicans that vote with Democrats and against the values our party holds dear—limited government, sanctity of life, inalienable rights enumerated in the Constitution, less taxes, etc.—are truly not Republicans.
The Democrat party didn’t run a candidate in Senate District 10, perhaps because they know they can count on my opponent, the incumbent, to vote with them.
What makes you the best candidate in the race?
More than a dozen political action committees have donated to my opponent. My campaign has received no PAC donations. I am funded by individuals and will represent the voters, not special interests. I’m endorsed by Montanans for Limited Government and Legistats. They know I’m the best candidate in this primary because I would more faithfully represent Republican and Constitutional values than my opponent.
In general I support the idea of limited government. There are only a few things that I actually see as the role of government. Among those are negotiating trade deals beneficial to the American people, providing for a reasonable and adequate National Defense, and also providing for a reasonable and adequate response to wholly foreseeable and inevitable state and national crisis such as global pandemics and climate change.
Both of our predominant political parties have shown a complete and total inadequacy to fulfill what would be considered their primary responsibilities.
Why should we believe either of these candidates can provide better alternatives regardless of their political party?
I made a complaint about the 2017 increase in fuel taxes to my Senator, Steve Fitzpatrick. I declared that a 25% Montana’s fuel tax was huge and burdensome for the little business I was running at the time. Fitzpatrick’s response? It’s not a 25% increase if you include the Federal tax in the total bill.
One year later, the Montana Contractor’s Association was complaining that outside interests were angling for “their money”.
That’s the problem. Nobody understands that it’s my money that they’re taking from me.
If you want Republican candidate that votes with the democrats so much of the time, he hands the dem governor everything he wants in the legistlative session…. then re elect Steve Fitzpatrick. But, if you want a person who understands the limited role government should have, the value of a strict interpretation of the Constitution, a desire to follow the Republican party platform, then I suggest you vote for Jeni Dodd. She is the real true conservative republican in the SD 10 race.
Dodd is absolutely nuts. She is at nearly every commission meeting and talks on every issue. Usually this talking has nothing to do with the actual issue and is just a string of unintelligible gibberish. She essentially likes to hear herself talk and just acts like a general Karen who likes to complain about every issue put in front of her and never has an actual solution.
No “Pete” or whoever you are, I’m at nearly every commission meeting because I care about the city and its citizens and because I’m tired of a city commission run by cronyism and unresponsive to the people of Great Falls. So instead of just complaining amongst friends, I speak out. It’s protected by the First Amendment and it called the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. You should try it sometime. It’s sad to see that you think speaking truth to power is a bad thing.
Hey look, it’s another speech complaining about something by Jeni! The airing of grievances is a great during Festivus, but you kind of ruin the fun by doing it all year. Especially when it is pointless and without addressing any solutions. You are a toddler who stamps their feet and yells no.
Fitzpatrick says he is for a fiscally responsible government, but backed the Medicaid for all bill that was passed. That doesn’t seem be practicing what you preach. Beware the wolf in sheep skins. Anyone can recite a parties platform, but truly practicing it is another thing. Seems odd that the Democrats did not run their candidate in the Primary. Is it that they already have their man running. Makes one wonder.