The GOP is sending out direct mail fliers saying, “Jon Tester is so extreme he can't be trusted to vote to protect Montana.”
The front of the two-page flier shows a photo of what appears to be a teenage girl hugging a stuffed animal and warns, “Violent sexual predators are out there.” It cites Tester's vote on the Senate floor in 2001 to kill Senate Bill 139, sponsored by then-Sen. Jack Wells, R-Bozeman.
In response, Tester spokesman Matt McKenna said the Democrat voted against the bill because the then-state librarian testified against the bill and “made it very clear to the Legislature that these controls were already in place all across the state and that this bill was unnecessary.”
“Jon Tester believes in less government regulation, not more, and he believes in local control,” McKenna said.
The roll-call vote shows that Tester and 36 other senators - including 18 Republicans - voted on Feb. 7, 2001, to kill SB139, while 12 senators - all Republicans - favored keeping the bill alive.
Among those voting with Tester to kill the bill were such current and former Republican stalwarts as Senate President Tom Beck of Deer Lodge, Bill Crismore of Libby, Bob DePratu of Whitefish, Bill Glaser of Huntley, Lorents Grosfield of Big Timber, Don Hargrove of Belgrade, Royal Johnson of Billings, Walt McNutt of Sidney, Bill Tash of Dillon and Tom Zook of Miles City.
Asked whether Republican senators who voted with Tester also had failed to protect children from sexual predators, Chuck Denowh, executive director of the state Republican Party, said, “From our perspective, this is just about Jon Tester.”
He said Tester's vote against the bill is a marked contrast to what Republican incumbent Sen. Conrad Burns did in Congress. Burns co-sponsored the Children's Internet Protection Act that was signed into law by President Clinton in 2000 and upheld as constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2003. It protects children from obscene images and content in public schools and libraries.
Denowh provided a list of other Senate bills Burns has sponsored addressing the topic. Another bill co-sponsored by Burns would make it a federal crime for sex offenders failing to notify authorities of their whereabouts.
McKenna forwarded a list of bills Tester has voted for or co-sponsored addressing the sexual abuse of children, including one imposing life imprisonment for those convicted of the crime. Another bill would require sexual and violent offenders to pay the cost registering with state and local authorities.
Minutes of the committee hearing on the SB139 show those testifying for the legislation included representatives of the Christian Coalition of Montana and Montana Citizens for Decency through Law and several individuals.
Besides the state librarian, opponents of the bill included representatives of libraries in three communities, the Montana Library Association, American Civil Liberties Union and the Montana Coalition for Privacy and Freedom of Expression.
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