"That'll do! That'll do!" he shouted, signaling the dogs they had done enough.
The Democratic candidate for governor has that same message after a dozen years of Republican control of the governor's office. Schweitzer believes Montana is due for change and matter-of-factly considers himself the right person at the right time for the 2004 gubernatorial race.
"People that have been running our government for the last 12 years have demonstrated how good they are," he said. "It's time for a change, somebody that will listen to folks, somebody that will bring some commonsense solutions."
He cited a May poll showing Martz and the GOP-controlled Legislature with low job-approval ratings, saying the numbers mean three of four Montanans feel those running the state are doing a lousy job.
Schweitzer sat casually at his dining room table and exuded unabashed confidence in proclaiming he can do better.
"I believe I'm better equipped to move Montana forward than anybody else," said the sole Democrat in the race so far. "I don't have any magic. But I've got a lot of energy and I'm a hard worker. I've been involved in business my whole life."
Schweitzer, who has 2,700 acres in two wheat, barley and hay farms near Whitefish and Forsyth, likes to emphasize his farm-and-ranch background.
He insisted on giving a reporter a tour of his land, including stops to check the curing of cut hay, feed two pigs and show off his cow dogs, Pica and Bonnie.
His experience in agriculture, including farming and irrigation projects on three continents, give him business credentials second to none and that's just what Montana and its languishing economy need in a governor, Schweitzer said.
"I understand this business," he said. "I'm not talking about this in an abstract way. I'm been an innovator in business. I've done things, gone places, built things that people hadn't done before. And that's what it's going to take to move Montana forward."
The centerpiece of his campaign is the "Grow Montana Plan," which recommends greater in-state investment of the coal tax trust fund, increased spending on education, more affordable health care and ensured access to public lands for recreation.
But the heart of the plan is tapping the coal trust for $200 million to bolster the economy.
Schweitzer, 47, would use the money to help first-time homebuyers with their down payments, just the kind of assistance that he says would keep newcomers in such key professions as teaching and nursing from moving elsewhere.
He also envisions the money being loaned to small businesses for help in making, marketing and shipping their Montana products. Pressed for specific examples, Schweitzer mentioned investment in ethanol plants or mobile livestock slaughtering plants used by rancher co-ops.
Schweitzer shrugs off questions about the need for such financial aid in the wake of two similar state programs being abandoned because of loan defaults and lack of interest. He insists the demand is there for programs properly tailored to meet it.
"We need to do a better job in finding projects in Montana that are low-risk bankable loans and placing a higher percentage of that coal trust money in Montana," he said.
As for health care, he wants government to help small businesses band together in buying health insurance for employees in order to get lower rates. "Part of stifling investments in Montana is the inability to find affordable health care," he said.
Schweitzer also would have Montana join with other states to pool their market clout and negotiate better prices for prescription drugs purchased by pharmacies.
He's more skimpy on details of the education funding goal, acknowledging economic growth may have to come first.
Schweitzer, 47, was a political nobody when he ran for the U.S. Senate in 2000 against two-term incumbent Republican Conrad Burns. He lost by just four points, coming closer than he admits today he had a right to expect.
But that race was valuable springboard for this one.
"Probably that was a mountain too high for me to climb ... me starting so far in the valley with so little equipment," he said. "But I've got a little more rope this time, I'm starting a little higher up the mountain and I think we know a little bit more about climbing."
Schweitzer said he doesn't care if he has a Democratic primary challenger or who's running on the Republican side.
He sees little distinction between the three announced GOP contenders _ Secretary of State Bob Brown and former state senators Tom Keating of Billings and Ken Miller of Laurel _ and Republican incumbent Judy Martz.
Although Martz has yet to announce her political plans, Schweitzer said none of the other candidates have made any effort to distinguish themselves from her or her policies.
He's ready when asked his opinion of Brown, arguably the front-runner for the GOP nomination.
Brown, a former lobbyist for US West, Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. and the university system, has a background that can hardly find favor with voters, he said.
"People feel special interests have too much power in Helena," he said. "I'd be surprised if they would select a lobbyist."
And that brings Schweitzer to one of his favorite topics: his refusal to accept campaign money from the special-interest political action committees, or PACs, and the Democratic Party.
Schweitzer said the policy is not a gimmick; it's a response to citizens fed up with the influence special interests exert over government.
Sure, he got nearly one of five dollars in his Senate campaign from PACs and his party, but Schweitzer said his change of heart merely reflects what he's heard from Montanans on the campaign trail.
"People in Montana believe that they've lost control of this government," he said.
Lobbyists, many of them former lawmakers themselves, lead inexperienced legislators around as if they have rings through their noses, Schweitzer said.
Shunning special-interest money will silence some critics once he's in office and making decisions that may be unpopular, he said.
"I don't want anybody to say, 'Well. he did it because of the money.' There won't be this perception that I did it because of the money."
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