Swiftboat Alert (MT-at large)

By: Lt. Col. (ret.) Jim Hunt

In the same week that my opponent, Congressman Dennis Rehberg, voted against the GI Bill—legislation that cares for our heroes when they return from war—he attacked me with a petty, political distraction. It's a predictable political stunt from a career Washington politician.

Yesterday, the Montana Republican Party and Rehberg attacked me and my 23 years of service in the Montana Army National Guard – citing an obscure, new Pentagon regulation regarding photos of candidates in their old uniforms. They told us to pull down our ad—an ad that speaks about Montana's values and priorities (you can see the ad below).

It appears that Congressman Rehberg, who has never served in the military, has a problem with me using a picture from my years in the Guard.

Let me be clear – I won't let him pull my ad down. I won't let him erase the 23 years of service that I'm damn proud of.

Montana needs a leader who won't play political games. We need a leader who will protect our veterans and provide them with the benefits that heroes deserve.

I'm going to fight back against Rehberg's attack on my service. But, most importantly, I'm not going to let him play games with veterans, and I'm not going to let him get away with letting Montana's vets down when they need us most.

This is going to be a defining issue in the campaign. He's voted against mandatory dwell time for our troops which would provide them time to recover after long tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He's voted against higher pay for our sailors, soldiers, airmen and Marines.  He's consistently voted against better health care for our veterans.  And just last week he voted against a new GI Bill for the men and women returning from war.

With a record like that, it's no surprise he's already reaching into his bag of political tricks. As a retired Lieutenant Colonel, I'm not going to let him get away with it and I'm not going to let him ignore vets any longer.

I've told Congressman Rehberg that I'll debate him anytime. And, since Montana has more veterans-per-capita than almost other state, let's start by debating the GI Bill. It's a debate he's going to lose.

Montana deserves better. If you have not already, please join my campaign at www.huntforcongress.com.  And help me keep this ad up on the air.  (You can make a secure donation HERE.) I want every Montanan to watch it and decide for themselves who they want representing them in Congress.

(THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE DOES NOT ENDORSE THIS POST.)

•  Rehberg must hate our service men and women

  and I wish you luck in your campaign.  I'd vote for you if I could!

  by Angry Pilgrim on Wed May 21, 2008 at 11:55:02 AM PDT

•  Good for you

  We'll be watching and rooting for you!  Amazing how anyone can be against a veteran, unless he never was one, aka Bush.  

  DON'T TAKE DOWN THAT AD!!!

  by jjmn on Wed May 21, 2008 at 11:57:52 AM PDT

•  Looking forward to voting for

  you in our June 3 primary.

  by egan on Wed May 21, 2008 at 11:59:56 AM PDT

•  I'm not living in MT right now

  but my parents are... I'll get the word out!

  by doctorgirl on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:03:06 PM PDT

•  Thank you for your service to the U.S.

  ...an obscure, new Pentagon regulation...

  Doubt this regulation would survive a First Amendment challenge.

  It's funny/peculiar that a Republican Pentagon would promulgate this regulation during a political season when more Democrats than Republicans who've served in the military will be running for office, often against Republican chickenhawks.

  Best of luck to you!

  by Greasy Grant on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:03:20 PM PDT

•  Thank you for running

  on a support the soldiers platform, not to mention sane energy policy.

  I live in the coastal Northwest, but my heart is Montanan, as my great-grandmother went west in a covered wagon and settled in Paradise Valley.  She built a place in the foothills outside of Livingston just to draw her descendants back to Montana forever.

  It worked beautifully.  I follow the 'blue-ing' of Montana and love what it means.  Montanans are fighters for the environment and they have to be tireless because the assaults just never quit.

  I am also a member of a military family (mother of daughter married to a soldier who has been to Afghanistan and who is going soon to Iraq, two grandsons).  I do online activism as a small foot soldier for the GI Bill and IAVA concerns, but I figure every little bit helps, and I raise awareness of others who don't understand the issues because that world is foreign to them.  They are generally sympathetic, but just don't get what we really ask of our military men and woman.

  I can't give money today, but I promise I will give your campaign some money soon (sorry it will be small given my circumstances, but I do have a budget item called 'Democracy' and so I give a little something every week.)

  Again, thanks!

  by mission419 on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:07:18 PM PDT

•  Thanks, Jim.

  This Missoulian appreciates you.  Rehberg is the consumate con artist.

  And maybe an increasingly vulnerable con artist.  

  by RadioGirl on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:08:13 PM PDT

•  My Rehberg story

  Good luck to you, Jim. I lived in Montana in the '90s and Pat Williams has always been my favorite Congressman.

  Dennis Rehberg is such a jerk. Here's a story I posted about him a few months ago:

  In the early 90s, I was editor of a small-town newspaper in Montana. I can't remember what Rehberg was running for at the time -- it may have been Congress or some statewide post.

  Anyway, Denny Rehberg and his flunkies were on a tour of newspapers to meet with their staffs and pimp himself. I remember thinking that he was a smug Republican asshole who I would never vote for.

  And then I talked to one of my reporters, who had previously worked at the nearby small-town newspaper about 40 miles away. He was still good friends with the staff there and had just talked to the editor.

  Rehberg had stopped at that newspaper before he came to ours, and while there, had apparently cracked some offensive "squaw" jokes. (They were popular among the bigots there at the time ... I don't know if that's still the case because I don't live there anymore.)

  What Rehberg didn't know was that the editor was half-Native American. Apparently the meeting got very frosty and uncomfortable before he quickly made his exit.

  by Pompatus on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:10:42 PM PDT

•  Nice ad, Jim!

  Now put together an encore that makes all those points about your opponent's anti-soldier votes & wrap it up something like "Dan Rehberg won't support our troops in Congress--I will!"

  by Uncle Cosmo on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:13:07 PM PDT

  •  (Sorry, shoulda looked before posting)

    Dennis, not Dan.

    by Uncle Cosmo on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:14:08 PM PDT

•  More of the same.

  Keep at it Jim!

  Rehberg's the same guy that called CHIP "extremist political ideology" and said Montanans would support REAL ID if they just understood it.

  I can't wait until you retire him.

  by Last Best Place on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:43:36 PM PDT

•  Kick his butt, Jim.

  As a vet with 3 years active Army and 3 years Michigan NG, I applaud your service and wish you the best of luck in your campaign.

  by edg on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:45:59 PM PDT

•  Great Ad Jim!

  I think your ad will be so affective you have the Republicans running scared.

  by kanuk on Wed May 21, 2008 at 12:49:45 PM PDT

•  Rehberg is worried

  Jim Hunt is the Real Deal, and Rehberg knows it.  This is Denny's first tough contest in a long time...and as a candidate who doesn't much like to work (he's known as one of the richest and one of the laziest of the Representatives) he's likely quaking with fear over the campaign he faces.

  Go Jim!  You can win this one!

  by Desmo on Wed May 21, 2008 at 01:45:21 PM PDT