Schweitzer is known for his bluster and bombast. When put to good use, Schweitzer's ability to fire up a crowd with anecdotes that play up the best qualities of the West earns high praise and reflects positively on the state he represents. We saw this during his turn on the stage at the National Democratic Convention, where his spirited speech garnered national attention and accolades.
So we can't help but feel embarrassed - no, outraged - by the governor's remarks to a convention of trial lawyers in July in which he painted all of us in Montana in a poor light and called into question his very ability to represent our state.
The content of his speech is downright foul. In it, he raises laughs by suggesting he used his influence as governor to help fellow Democrat Jon Tester successfully beat Republican Conrad Burns in a close race for the Senate two years ago.
Schweitzer says it was just a joke, and has apologized for any unintended offense. Meanwhile, formal complaints have been filed with the state accusing the governor of breaking elections law.
Did Schweitzer in fact use his influence in an attempt to sway an election? Or did he just say so to make himself out as a deep pool in a shallow ocean?
Either way, his “joke” insults residents of the state's seven Indian reservations by suggesting they had to be guarded from Republican poll-watchers. It insults elections officials of Butte-Silver Bow by suggesting they manipulated the release of county votes. And he insults everyone in Montana when he portrays us as backwater naifs easily exploited by a savvy political mind.
In his speech to the trial lawyers, Schweitzer says: “I told you I was confident that we were gonna win this election, and I told you it was gonna be pretty easy if you wrote a check. It wasn't pretty easy, and I wasn't that confident, and it took a little extra work.”
He was talking about the 2006 race between Tester and Burns, but the same could just as easily apply to his own bid for re-election this year. What had looked like an easy contest against his opponents - Republican challenger and state Sen. Roy Brown, and Independent Stan Jones - before Schweitzer's unflattering comments surfaced, may now be much more of a challenge.
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Cathy K wrote on Sep 18, 2008 2:33 PM:
During Monday's debate where we sat right up front, he was sure squirming and I felt embarrassed for him tho I find it hard to respect him except as a person. Thank You again for your honesty in reporting. Cathy K in Stevi "