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Brian Schweitzer on Government Reform

Democratic MT Governor

 


Used cattle brand saying "VETO" to publicly burn bad bills

Schweitzer became known for his endearing folksiness. Frequently dropping the traditional necktie for a bolo tie, he instituted an open-door policy for reporters in his capitol office. There, they were likely to see his black-and-white border collie, Jag, dubbed the "First Dog of Montana." In 2008, Jag had an approval rating of 80%, higher than Schweitzer himself. The governor once traveled to Opheim, a town of 85 near the Canadian border, to give the commencement address at the local high school. Unremarkable, maybe, except there was only one student graduating.

The spectacles continued, often designed to embarrass the Republican legislature. At one point, Schweitzer fashioned a cattle brand with the word "VETO" and used it to dramatically burn bills in front of crowds outside the capitol. People loved it. Democrats overflow with praise for Schweitzer's "political gut."

Source: Michael Warren in The Weekly Standard magazine , Dec 23, 2013

Refuses special interest & PAC money for his campaign

Special interests have had far too much influence in Montana for far too long. I will not accept one cent of PAC or special interest money. I support full campaign finance disclosure and tougher ethics laws for lobbyists. To learn more about my proposed ethics reforms, please visit www.brianschweitzer.com. As Governor, I will work to enact policies that benefit the people of Montana, not special interests.
Source: 2004 Montana Gubernatorial National Political Awareness Test , Nov 1, 2004

Other governors on Government Reform: Brian Schweitzer on other issues:
MT Gubernatorial:
Steve Bullock
MT Senatorial:
Amanda Curtis
Champ Edmunds
Corey Stapleton
John Bohlinger
John Walsh
Jon Tester
Sam Rankin
Steve Daines

Gubernatorial Debates 2014:
AL: Bentley(R) vs.Griffith(D)
AR: Ross(D) vs.Hutchinson(R) vs.Griffin(R,Lt.Gov.)
AZ: Ducey(R) vs.DuVal(D) vs.Mealer(AE) vs.Gilbert(L) vs.Riggs(R)
CA: Brown(D) vs.Kashkari(R)
CO: Hickenlooper(D) vs.Beauprez(R) vs.Tancredo(R) vs.Hess(L)
CT: Malloy(D) vs.Foley(R) vs.Walker(R,Lt.Gov.)
FL: Scott(R) vs.Crist(D) vs.Snitker(L,Lt.Gov.)
GA: Deal(R) vs.Carter(D) vs.Hunt(L)
HI: Ige(D) vs.Aiona(R) vs.Abercrombie(D)
IA: Branstad(R) vs.Hatch(D) vs.Hoefling(R)
MA: Coakley(D) vs.Baker(R) &Polito(R,Lt.Gov.) vs.Grossman(D) vs.Berwick(D)
ME: LePage(R) vs.Michaud(D) vs.Cutler(I)
MI: Snyder(R) vs.Schauer(D)
NM: Martinez(R) vs.King(D)
NY: Cuomo(D) &Hochul(D,Lt.Gov.) vs.Astorino(R) vs.Hawkins(G) vs.Teachout(D)
OK: Fallin(R) vs.Dorman(D)
PA: Corbett(R) vs.Wolf(D) vs.Schwartz(D,lost primary) vs.Critz(D,Lt.Gov.,lost primary) 		Up for re-election 2014:
AK-R: Sean Parnell
AL-R: Robert Bentley
CA-D: Jerry Brown
CO-D: John Hickenlooper
CT-D: Dan Malloy
FL-R: Rick Scott
GA-R: Nathan Deal
HI-D: Neil Abercrombie
IA-R: Terry Branstad
ID-R: Butch Otter
IL-D: Pat Quinn
KS-R: Sam Brownback
ME-R: Paul LePage
MI-R: Rick Snyder
MN-D: Mark Dayton
NH-D: Maggie Hassan
NM-R: Susana Martinez
NV-R: Brian Sandoval
NY-D: Andrew Cuomo
OH-R: John Kasich
OK-R: Mary Fallin
OR-D: John Kitzhaber
PA-R: Tom Corbett
SC-R: Nikki Haley
SD-R: Dennis Daugaard
TN-R: Bill Haslam
VT-D: Peter Shumlin
WI-R: Scott Walker
WY-R: Matt Mead

Term-Limited or Retiring 2014:
AR-D: Mike Beebe
AZ-R: Jan Brewer
MA-D: Deval Patrick
MD-D: Martin O'Malley
RI-I: Linc Chafee
TX-R: Rick Perry 		Abortion
Budget/Economy
Civil Rights
Corporations
Crime
Drugs
Education
Energy/Oil
Environment
Families/Children
Foreign Policy
Free Trade
Govt. Reform
Gun Control
Health Care
Homeland Security
Immigration
Infrastructure/Technology
Jobs
Local Issues
Principles/Values
Social Security
Tax Reform
War/Iraq/Mideast
Welfare/Poverty


Election 2013:
New Jersey:
NJ-R: Chris Christie (won)
NJ-D: Barbara Buono (lost)
Virginia:
VA-R: Bob McDonnell(Retiring)
VA-R: Ken Cuccinelli (lost)
VA-D: Terry McAuliffe (won)


Contact info:
Fax number:
406-444-3111





Page last updated: Oct 06, 2014