In the last monthly reporting period that ended October 15, Kerns reported receiving over $6,500. A large chunk of that came from Republican organizations and officials. Here’s a breakdown.
Former and current legislators:
Mark Noland (Flathead County)…………………………………….$250
Steve Fitzpatrick (Cascade County)……………………………..$100
Steve Gist (Cascade or Flathead County?)……………………$400
George Nikolakakos (Legislative Candidate Cascade County)…….$208
Republican PACs:
Cascade County Republican Central Committee………..$200
Cascade Republican PAC………………………………….$400
So, why do you suppose Kerns is getting this late infusion of cash from politicos in the Republican Party? Could it be that they can see that Kerns’ opponent, Melissa Smith, has run a strong campaign? Could it be that Kerns has not run a good campaign? Could it be that this house district has the best “numbers” for Democrats in Cascade County? Probably all of the above.
A 5,000 pound elephant was sitting in the room on Monday night at MSU-Northern in Havre while the Hill County candidates participated in the public forum sponsored by the Havre Daily News. Republican Incumbent Senator Russ Tempel of Chester and Democrat challenger Dave Brewer of Havre respectfully agreed on nearly all issues and demonstrated what politics can be like when you’re not a partisan hack. Independent Les Odegard and Democrat Sheri Williams challenged Republican Diane McLean on her history as Hill County Commissioner in a spirited discussion.
And then there he was, the giant elephant we couldn’t ignore: the empty chair where Representative Ed Hill was supposed to be sitting. Democrat Paul Tuss running for House District 28 was not shaken by the no-show status of his inferior (on all levels) opponent. Tuss focused his answers on breaking through partisanship to achieve progress for Montanans. He touched on utilizing the private sector to address Montana’s housing crisis, using the budget surplus to support nursing homes, and affirming his support for the right to privacy as guaranteed in the Montana Constitution. Where was our lone representative Ed Hill? Why wasn’t he sharing his legislative vision for the people of Havre and answering honest questions in front of his constituents?
According to a constituent in Havre who had the unfortunate experience of having his door knocked by Ed Hill on Tuesday, “He declined to debate because he wanted to speak on neutral turf.” Of course Ed Hill would consider that an institution of knowledge such as MSU-Northern would be considered “unfair turf”.
Hill further buried his head in the sand Monday night by refusing to speak to the Havre Daily News for their Campaign Profile series, because “he couldn’t get the questions ahead of time.” Why is Ed Hill so afraid to answer questions from the people of Havre? Why can’t he think for himself on his toes? Havre is essentially a small town, and folks notice when you don’t have the guts to answer basic questions. The other six (two of them Republican) candidates did, and all answered with integrity and bravery.
If ever a title fit the Representative from House District 28, Coward of the County would be it. Except if Hill came across poor Becky after being assaulted by the Gatlin brothers, he would probably tell her that life begins at conception and be on his way.
By Lindsey Ratliff Lindsey is a lifelong Montanan born and raised in the Malt Barley Capital of the World (Fairfield, MT). A Dirt Road Democrat and political junkie, she interned in Sen. Baucus office in 2012 and has been active with local Democratic races since. She currently lives in Havre where she teaches kids how to draw, paint, and discern between facts and bullshit. She is currently serving her 2nd term on the Havre City Council.
If you follow Jasmine Krotkov (@JKrotkov) on Insta, you’ll see a Montana gal through and through. You’ll find her snowshoeing in subzero weather, or perhaps cutting and stacking her own firewood to heat her self-built, underground home through the winter. If she were the type, she could enjoy a lucrative career as an off-grid influencer. Luckily, she’s decided to keep fighting for things that will benefit her neighbors in Great Falls. Nobody does more voter contact than Jasmine Krotkov. Nobody. That’s how she knows what to do in the legislature – just what her constituents tell her.
It’s no surprise then that Jasmine Krotkov’s politics are largely focused on the practical. She’s not one of those politicians who shake their fists and yell, Rather, she’s working behind the scenes to assure that county roads are funded, snowplows functioning, and people are able to go about the business of life. This is the community-minded kind of politics that doesn’t garner much (if any) media attention. It’s the Get Down To Business attitude that drove her to build her own house, grow her own food, and keep her community moving forward. And it’s one of the reasons I trust Jasmine Krotkov to represent us – all of us – because she listens to us, and then speaks truth to power.
Krotkov’s work has always garnered trust from her neighbors. As a former postmaster, Jasmine braved all manner of weather to keep her community connected. She also served as the editor for the National Association of Postmasters, a position which introduced her to the intricacies of working with both state and federal government in a uniquely non-partisan capacity.
I know that Republicans would have you believe that Democrats are a monolith. But in Great Falls, that couldn’t be further from the truth. That’s why I think it’s important to note that Jasmine and I haven’t worked together on anything, ever. I wasn’t even sure she’d accept my request to answer some questions for this article. I’ve always viewed Jasmine’s platform as very moderate. Not only do I think she would agree, but I think there’s a tremendous need for folks like her in our House. I decided to approach Jasmine for this story after hearing her speech at the Democrat’s Fall Dinner. With an even tone and understated confidence, Jasmine talked about the growing divide between the Have and the Have Nots.
I think Krotkov’s speech is best presented in its entirety. And, let’s be honest, it’s damn good. So I’ll let Jasmine speak for herself here.
“I’m running for office because I want to build a society where everyone has the opportunity to reach their full potential.
When I was growing up, I was taught that If I worked hard, played by the rules, I’d succeed. Its not the same for Montanans growing up now. Young people today work just as hard as my generation did, but they just. can’t. get. ahead.
They work hard, but in our economy, the rules don’t apply to everyone equally. Some of us have been pushed to the back of the bus. Nowadays only SOME people are able to access decent health care, childcare and housing, not everyone. There’s no excuse for that in the richest nation ever to exist. One of every eight people in Montana lives in poverty.
Only SOME people in Montana get access to public lands for hunting, fishing, hiking, recreating or studying. Only SOME of us get to vote. Those are Policy choices, not personal failures. Our state legislature is building a class-based society of haves and have nots.
My opponent tried to pass a law that would de-fund fire departments, in favor of his own personal business. Apparently, he wants to be a HAVE MORE. My ancestors immigrated to America because they got a belly full of that junk back in the old country. Aristocrats and peasants. In America, we’re supposed to act like all people are created equal. Instead, our state legislature is enacting laws based on a distorted moral narrative of religious nationalism. Laws that relegate some of us to the back of the bus.
Its not about who’s left and who’s right, its about who is left behind”
Its clear that Jasmine knows her district, and the struggles of her neighbors, intimately. No matter who you are, Jasmine Krotkov will fight for you. Now, let’s fight to send her to Helena.
Fearless. Whenever anyone asks me about Lela, this is how I start. Lela Graham is fearless. Her campaign literature will tell you she’s a veteran, but beyond that mere mention is a history of badassery. The jumping out of planes 47 times, fighting oversea, Military Intelligence Corps kind of badassery. She served from 1996 – 2002. But with those adrenaline-inducing missions comes a fair amount of pain, heartache and loss, the kind that can alter who we are at our very core.
Resilient. That’s the second word I use to describe Lela. After a long and successful military career, Lela faced a struggle that we in Great Falls know far too well- substance abuse. Around 1 in 10 veterans struggle with substance abuse. Ever one to beat the odds, Lela celebrates six years of recovery this month. Perhaps scarier than facing enemy forces and even our own demons, Graham has made substance use and recovery the platform of her campaign. She’s knocked thousands of doors in her district and has told every voter about her plans to provide substance use treatment to people in Great Falls and across Montana. Graham is also the only Jewish candidate in Great Falls. Soon after Lela kicked off her door-knocking campaign, her district was inundated with anti-Semitic fliers. Tough as ever, Lela remained undaunted by the hate speech and has since knocked every door in her district.
Originally from Great Falls, Lela’s career took her all over the world. When she returned home to Great Falls, Graham immediately jumped into community volunteer work. Since then, Lela has become a Master Trainer for Narcan (a medication that saves lives by reversing the effects of opioid overdose.) She’s starting a nonprofit to help others struggling with substance use, and she’s somehow found time to run against one of Great Falls’ most “untouchable” candidates, Ed Buttrey. However, Buttrey’s harsh anti-choice views may prove too radical for even his own base this time around. In contrast, Lela has vocally supported bodily autonomy, helping organize multiple pro-choice events throughout the summer.
Lela Graham is a profile in patriotism, resilience, and bravery. We can think of no one better to serve Great Falls.
Lela Graham (right) is a founder of Great Falls’ newest recovery organization.
Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Thomas Jefferson January 1,1802, Letter to the Danbury Baptists, Jan. 1. 1802.
Now we come to legislator Scot Kerns. Before getting into details, we need to think a little about that good old time religion. Most of us are aware there are lots of different flavors of “Christianity,” some ultra conservative and some more liberal. There is no consensus among Christian churches on much of anything. From gay rights to capital punishment, one will find Christian churches with differing positions on virtually any political issue.
Beginning in the 1970s, some conservative Christian leaders began partnering with conservative political activists to mobilize their followers to engage the political process with an overarching goal of incorporating their religious views into public policy. And all along the way, they pointed at anyone who does not ascribe to their interpretation of scripture, calling them anti-Christian.
That effort over the last 50 years has paid off. Today conservtive Christains dominate politics from the US Supreme Court to the halls of the Montana Capitol. Our Governor, Greg Gianforte, and junior US Senator Steve Daines both attended the same conservative church in Bozeman. Visit the halls of the Montana Legislature and count the lawmakers wearing lapel pins with a tiny American Flag and a cross. And they have no reservations about imposing their form of religion on the rest of us. Welcome to the world of Christian Nationalism.
Scot Kerns is clearly steeped in the beliefs of the current right-wing religious uprising we face. After attending a private military school, he went on to receive a BA in theology from Concordia University in Chicago and then a MA in divinity from Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana. After college he was a pastor at St Paul’s Lutheran Church in Lincoln, Kansas. All of these are affiliated with Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod.
Without disappearing into the history of the Lutheran Church, here are a few of the positions of the Missouri Synod. Women cannot be ordained. Pro-capital punishment, anti-abortion, anti-LGBTQI. . .you get the picture. For more information you can check this out https://www.lcms.org/about/beliefs/faqs/lcms-views.
Since leaving College, Kerns has been a pastor in Kansas. He has been a guest pastor for KUFO radio, a station owned by the Missouri Synod. He says he’s a former Captain in the Air Force but doesn’t provide any dates, positions held, or places served in the roster of current legislators. He says he is currently Christian clergy but doesn’t say where. He says he is also a member of the Civil Air Patrol but his name does not appear on the Montana Wing Staff Roster as of May 2021. The Civil Air Patrol does have different memberships, but Kerns does not list any specifics. You really can’t tell from public documents what he is doing for a living right now. And his campaign material is equally vague.
His campaign contributors have an interesting story to tell. He hasn’t gotten much support from Great Falls residents. A review of his last three campaign finance reports reveals that less than 40 percent of his donors live in Great Falls. Most of his out-of-town donors are heavy hitters in the Republican Party, including Greg Gianforte who gave him the maximum; Chuck Denowh, President of the lobbying firm, The Montana Group; and current and former legislators from across the state including far-right legislators Kenneth Bogner, Tom McGillvray, Keith Regier and Bob Keenan.
But at the end of the day, what really matters are his bills and how he votes. And here we see that he is clearly on the far-right of the Republican Party. Among the bills he sponsored are:
HB 436- Prohibiting local governments from restricting concealed weapons in publicly owned buildings. Failed
HJ 6- Resolution in opposition to a COVID-19 vaccination requirement for students of the Montana University System. Failed
His votes on bills he did not sponsor basically track the votes of the Trump Cult members in the legislature. He’s wrong on reproductive freedom and abortion, wrong on guns, wrong on tax, wrong on education, wrong on energy, and wrong on the environment. Rather than going through the long litany of bad bills supported by Kerns, we’ll just quote from a recent blog post in the Western Word, which is dedicated to independent commentary about politics, sports, the media, and current events. Blogger Mike Brown worked for Republican Conrad Burns in the mid-1990s . In his blog about the race between Kerns and Melissa Smith, he wrote, “I plan on voting for Melissa Smith. I followed Kerns’ votes in the last legislative session, and he is a full-blown MAGA guy.”
E-City Beat decided not to seek replies to a candidate questionnaire they sent out because of concerns raised by Republicans that their answers would be used against them.
Apparently legislative candidate Fred Anderson didn’t get the memo. He responded and E-City Beat ran it. We certainly hope his response below hurts his chances of election.
Anderson’s response to the E-City Beat question on abortion was. . .
“Life begins at conception and abortion should not be legal at any time for any reason.”
Anderson went on to explain that he believes all life is precious and he anticipates there would be numerous bills on abortion in the next legislature but, of the options E-City Beat allowed in it’s questionnaire, the above statement best characterized his position.
Thanks to E-City Beat for letting us know just how extreme Republican legislators can be on the abortion issue.
