U.S. Representative Matt Rosendale (R-MT), a member of the House Freedom Caucus, announced today that he’s running for the Senate seat held by the incumbent Democrat Senator Jon Tester. Prior to the announcement, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) had reportedly planned to endorse Rosendale — until the Speaker received “extreme blowback from Trump allies on the Hill,” according to Fox News.
Rosendale will run against former Navy SEAL Tim Sheehy, who has been endorsed by Montana’s Republican Governor Gregory Gianforte and other top GOP officials. Sheehy has endorsed Trump for re-election but Trump has yet to announce his endorsement in the Montana race.
[Note: In Tester’s 2018 re-election, he defeated Rosendale, 50.3 percent to 46.8 percent.]
Michael Reagan, the adopted son of the late President Ronald Reagan and his first wife, Hollywood movie star Jane Wyman, chimed in on the political chatter about Johnson “backpedaling” on endorsing Rosendale, noting the risk.
My father told me if you endorse in a primary u always piss off 50% of the people,SO DONT!Johnson backpedals on divisive Senate endorsement after GOP blowback https://t.co/7UYsExMT1y
— Michael Reagan (@ReaganWorld) February 8, 2024
The 78-year-old Republican warned: “My father told me if you endorse in a primary u always piss off 50% of the people, SO DONT!”
Note: Michael Reagan is the president of the Ronald Reagan Legacy Foundation, which he created “to memorialize my father’s accomplishments, and to educate and inspire people worldwide to value freedom and liberty.”
