Refreshing this thread.
I've met with Bodner three times. It reflects my interest in seeing a challenge to the two-party status quo. Like some who commented here, I would vote for Big Bird or Daffy Duck as an Independent US Senate Candidate before I'd vote for either of the other two parties. And I don't see the Libertarians having any chance.
I did analysis of Sheehy's votes since he's been in as a freshman Senator. Pretty much in lockstep with Cruz (R-TX) and Lee (R-UT). He was going to oppose Lee's public land sale Amendment if it came to the floor, but it never did. Point being, as much as Rs in Montana have told us they are great on public lands and conservation, they haven't been when the time has come.
We already have one first-term Republican US Senator from MT hand picked by Daines. If we have another hand-picked first term Republican who is told to stand in line (back of the line) by the party bosses, in effect Texas and Utah have four Senators.
As someone who is social conservative and abides by the "you do you, I'll do me" motto, as someone who is fiscally very conservative, and someone who thinks the Constitution is a great document worth defending, I never thought I'd find such a huge gap between me and the Republican Party. Yet, for the last ten years that gap has grown and grown, to the point where I can never see myself voting for a Republican Senator.
The way Senator Daines avoided a primary for his hand-picked successor was the last straw for me. Yeah, I'll always make sure to vote, but I'll vote for a write-in before I'll vote for the hand-picked anointed successor who has not had to endure a primary and is a product of the same BS thing the Dems did by not having a primary for President in 2024. I don't subscribe to "Yeah, but what about (insert opponent here)" crap.
And none of that says I would vote for the MT Democratic US Senate candidate who is going to be told how to vote/behave by Schumer, AOC, and the shiny new objects that are the form of the DSA candidates from New York. They represent virtually nothing I subscribe to.
So, I find myself to be the anti-party. I intend to spend the rest of my life doing what I can to resist the two-party system. Which is why I've attended the meetings when invited by Bodner.
My first meeting was the normal, intro/get-to-know each other. The next was a fundraiser where I got to see how he interacted with people he hoped would write a check. Coffee yesterday was just me and him, each being more comfortable asking questions that might not be the easiest to answer. Over the course of a couple hours it became apparent that he is smart and personable. I've spent a lot of time thinking about it, even calling some of my friends who I'd call political insiders.
If ever my notion of upsetting this two-party BS was to have a chance he might just be that person, and the turmoil of today just might be that time. Maybe not. But, I'm kind of at the point Kris Kristofferson sang in Me and Bobby McGee....."Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose." I don't feel I have anything to lose, so it makes it pretty easy to reject the two-party notion and be independent in how I approach this.
I'm going to have him on my podcast this week. Even if there are things I know we will disagree on, I am convinced he sees that problems of our currently broken government being in large part a function of the two-party system and the lack of leadership at all levels in DC.
I'm not even going to invite the other two candidates on the podcast - it's a waste of the audience's time to hear the same shrill attacks they find on cards stuffed in their mailboxes from now until November. Fugg that.
Maybe I'm kidding myself to think Montanans have had enough of this shit. I've had enough. I've been in this political world for the better part of thirty years. It's broken so bad. I know that the issues important to me and the folks who follow our platform are not represented in DC.
I don't see that Montanans have anything to lose; at least not the Montanans who stay here at lower wages and higher costs for the residency benefits of hunting/fishing and access to public lands. Continuing to play the existing two-party game isn't going to solve any of the issues I work on. I already know where that path leads, so I'm not going to kid myself that something will change by voting for the R or D who tells me what they think I want to hear.
I'm going to investigate the Bodner option and see what the audience response it. Hell, I even made a small political donation to his cause; only the second time I've made a political donation (last was Tim Fox as the primary candidate against GG). So far, he's said the right things about hunting, fishing, conservation and public lands. I guess we'll learn more when we do the podcast.
Feel free to post up any questions you'd like me to ask. I've got a pretty long list, but there is likely something I'm overlooking.
I suspect the podcast will roll out in the last half of July.
www.bozemandailychronicle.com
