Tester Wins Montana Primary

MISSOULA, Mont. -- The words of Jon Tester's acceptance speech Tuesday night were the words of a uniter. Just before eleven o'clock the farmer from Big Sandy jumped up before a fire-hazard-sized crowd in Missoula, now as Montana's democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate. With a 61 percent mandate from the state's democratic voters he went on to praise his top opponents, centrist John Morrison and green candidate Paul Richards, and called for integrity and honesty to return to the Montana office.

W hen a politician like Burns uses those words you know he's lying. When a Montana farmer like Tester says it you know he's pissed and telling the truth.

People in the audience whispered the words Mansfield and Metcalf.

Word spread threw the crowd that all eyes were on Montana to figure out how to beat the Republicans.

Because Montana was about to do it with Jon Tester.

The view from the floor included ranch grandmothers, some progressives, young Montanans, even some hippies; all ecstatic in a standing-room only, armpit in your face, two-arms up shout fest. The friction and movement of it all had the room at about a 117 degree temperature and this onlooker was pretty sure that the cocktail lounge in the Holiday Inn was going to go up in a Great White-esque fire storm. Pour another martini on it people! Tester had just won what was projected to be a race to close to call.

Unless you were a Montana voter.

The Tester surge began a few weeks ago. Some say it was the now-famous Flat-top commercial, others contend it was the Morrison-affair scandal. It doesn't hurt that he's a common-sense Montana farmer squaring off against the fraudulent fat-cat Conrad Burns. But when it really gets down to it, this country-boy Tester ran a shrewd campaign reaching out to diverse age groups. He can shoot from the hip when debating, and can look the voters square in the eye when he talks about a particular issue from his platform.

Burns waited just fifteen minutes before attacking Tester on the issues of gay marriage and flag burning. Tester coolly responded that he doesn't support a ban on either on grounds of personal freedom and expression, time-honored Montana traditions.

Let the games begin. And look for the moderate Republicans to vote Democrat.

Lowbagger.org will continue to monitor the Tester campaign.

             

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