HomeSubscribeDonate
Montana's 2020 election
Montana's 2020 election
The Montana Free Press guide
Republican for U.S. House
(Lost in June primary)

Key coverage in the race for U.S. House

Race profile: Representing Montana in the U.S. House, who can bring a cure for health care?

U.S. House candidates Kathleen Williams and Matt Rosendale have made health care central to their campaigns. They may agree on a few details, but their proposed paths forward could hardly be more divergent.

Montana Lowdown: Matt Rosendale

State Auditor Matt Rosendale interviewed by MTFP Editor-In-Chief John Adams before the June 2020 primary

Montana Lowdown: Kathleen Williams

Former Rep. Kathleen Williams interviewed by MTFP Editor-In-Chief John Adams before the June 2020 primary

Montana PBS debate: U.S. House

Video of Williams and Rosendale at their Montana PBS debate Sept. 23
Follow MTFP's ongoing election coverage with our free newsletter

Campaign finance

No campaign finance filings yet on file. Candidates generally file with the Federal Election Commission or Montana Commissioner of Political Practices on a quarterly basis. Federal candidates that haven't raised or spent more than $5,000 aren't required to file reports.


On the issues

Issue statements were solicited from active candidates via a written questionnaire before the June primary election. Answers were lightly edited for punctuation and spelling.

Particularly as the nation deals with the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, what federal action would you support to help create good, high-paying jobs for Montana workers?

Manufacturing and healthy extraction of our state’s natural resources.

What separates you from your primary opponents as your party’s best candidate to represent Montana in Washington, D.C.?

I'm the born and raised union trained oilfield electrician. I'm the voice of skilled labor, which is absolutely necessary when the automation revolution hits.

If elected to the House, how would you attempt to bridge partisan divides to represent the concerns of Montanans who don't share your political orientation in Washington D.C.?

I'm an Eisenhower moderate conservative. This country has a left hand and right hand and is ripping the body apart. We need to start electing moderates. That can only take place in primary elections.

Would you have voted to impeach President Donald Trump based on the evidence presented to the U.S. House last year? Why?

Absolutely not. It's not a crime to be unliked.

Do you see reining in the federal debt as a priority? If so, how should that be accomplished? If you support new taxes, whom specifically should that burden fall on? If you support spending cuts, which specific places in the federal budget should be targeted? (We assume that working to minimize waste, fraud and abuse is a given.)

We are taxing our middle class into poverty. We need taxes but this is ridiculous. This country has to obtain a better procurement system to reuse instead of constantly taxing, overspending, and not being accountable

Do you support keeping the Affordable Care Act in place? What if any alternate federal policies would you support to promote Montanans’ access to safe, affordable health care?

No. I'm not in favor of Obamacare. Nothing in this world is free. We need to allow a more open transparent system of health care that doesn't have government sanctions creating monopolies and allowing for price gouging.

Do you believe the federal government has enacted effective policies to keep Montana’s family-owned farms viable businesses? If not, which pieces of federal policy would you push to change?

No. Same as health care and the FDA Our government (USDA) has created monopolies in our government to allow price gouging. It's crippling our food independence.

Should the federal government consider transferring some federally held land into state ownership?

Yes. States need more individual control and the federal government needs to be more of a support system. Like our constitutional republic was designed.

Do you support the Montana Water Rights Protection Act implementing the Confederated Salish-Kootenai Tribes Water Compact in its current form before Congress?

Too early to give a definite answer but the more I research the more clear my answer is becoming no.


Stay tuned for more

We'll be updating this page with new information through Election Day in November 2020.

Have ideas about additional coverage that would be helpful as you consider your vote? Tell us at edietrich@montanafreepress.org.