Last-chance election letters

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Today is the final chance to get an election letter in the Daily Inter Lake, as we do not run letters on Election Day. More letters appear on Pages C6-C8.)

Re-elect Garner in HD7

I am writing in support of my friend Frank Garner and I’m asking you to support him in his bid for reelection in House District 7.

I’ve known Frank now for many years and I am proud to call him my friend. I know him as a man of conviction and faith and I’ve met few people in my life with the ability to bring people together for a common cause. His leadership and passion are gifts he willingly shares to the benefit of others. His long record of public service to this community is second to none and his commitment to public safety and first responders covers decades in the valley.

I sleep better at night knowing people like Frank are at work trying to solve problems that make our community better. I hope you’ll join me in supporting him and his work for our community by voting for him in the Republican primary. —Zack Bradley, Kalispell

Bottling plant will hurt the valley; vote for 17-01

Here is the negative side of thwater bottling plant proposed in Creston.

—Gobbling up all our water. —Contaminating our Flathead Lake. (The plant owner will rinse the bottles before filling them and ultimately destroy our lake and streams.)

Property values in this area will hit rock bottom when we have no water.

Tourism will disappear because our pristine environment will be destroyed. By that time he will be long gone with his millions. We will be left in despair.

This is bad for all of us. Vote FOR Initiative 17-01. —Kathy Putney, Kalispell

GOP voting suggestions

Dr. Al Olszewski has my vote for U.S. Senate because of his stand on health and veterans’ care, national defense, and property and water rights. Al believes our state and federal constitutions are to be always followed. Therefore, he does not support the Salish and Kootenai water compact. It is unconstitutional to take all the water rights owned by individuals on the reservation and give them to the tribes and to provide off-reservation tribal water rights to manage water flow which depreciates the value of property of thousands of people.

Both Russ Fagg and Troy Downing have stated that they support the water compact because it was a negotiated settlement by the Montana Legislature and would prevent years of litigation over water rights. Both statements are incorrect. First, there was no negotiation. The Legislature could not amend the compact. Second, in adjudication the water court would sort and manage the filed off-reservation water rights on degree of similarity and legal validity. Each case (group of individuals) would be issued an order. Judge McElyea has indicated he would use the same procedure.

Matt Rosendale cannot be elected, as Republications would lose control of the Montana Land Board because Tim Fox is very influenced by the governor.

Randy Brodehl is the most qualified candidate for county commissioner because of his financial and management experience as a legislator and success in business. Gary Krueger supports the Salish and Kootenai compact.

My pick for sheriff is Calvin Beringer because he has the most experience and is active in many organizations and David Dunn for House District 9 and Robert Welzel for House District 7.

Please vote for the following precinct incumbents if you see them on your Republican ballot: McGregor Rhodes, Heidi Roedel and Donald (Mark) Roedel. Aleyna Raymond and Jolene Regier are also good choices. —Verdell Jackson, Kalispell

Vote against 17-01 and for property rights

Please join me in voting for our property rights by voting against initiative 17-01. If passed, this initiative sets a startling precedent, allowing zoning to be weaponized and targeted at the rights of a single property owner.

The idea of a group banding together in an effort to take away the rights of another through this initiative conjures up the spirit of a lynch mob. The very idea of usurping an individual’s rights in this way should be unthinkable to every American. What we haven’t heard in all the hubbub is a shred of context, and facts taken out of context are no longer facts … they become lies.

The context of the DNRC water-court decision to issue a water permit is that Egan Slough sits downhill of a 247 million acre watershed that collects over 290 trillion gallons of water in precipitation a year. On an average day, 6 billion gallons of water flow past the slough via the Flathead River. The amount of water that would be used by the plant would be less than 1/10 of a teaspoon per gallon of water passing by, not to mention the water flowing through the shallow aquifer. This is literally a drop in a bucket.

I believe that the main reason why the outcry of this mob has been able to take root is through the distorted emotional marketing they have used to present their cause to the public. We are constantly being bombarded with visual images of millions of gallons extracted from our valley’s water supply for commercial benefit.

I don’t pretend to know the agenda behind this initiative, but, when all of the facts are laid on the table, there is obviously more to the story than “protecting our water.” Vote for your property rights. Vote against initiative 17-01. — William Breckenridge, Kalispell

White will protect your rights if elected sheriff

Finally, it is great to have a sheriff’s race candidate that we can really be enthusiastic about. Jordan White’s credentials/experience/accomplishments are borderline amazing (for anyone under 100 years old) — deputy sheriff, undersheriff, deputy coroner, firefighter, SWAT team leader, pilot, as well as search rescue coordinator/helicopter, swift water, and dive rescue specialist.

A man of deep conviction and staunch defender of Second Amendment rights, he took the initiative to see to it that our right to keep and bear arms was protected at the recent Patriots Day Celebration at the fairgrounds. He earned an A+ with a 100 percent score on Gary Marbut’s Montana Shooting Sports Association sheriff candidate scorecard (candidate Heino got a C+ and Stahlberg and Beringer were Fs). Most sheriffs and chiefs of police enter the job knowing about policies and how to shoot firearms, but have no knowledge about budget management. As undersheriff, one of Jordan White’s many great accomplishments was passing the budget test with flying colors.

Not only will Jordan White protect our civil liberties as he keeps his oath to protect the Constitution, he will also be responsible with our tax dollars. I heartily enjoin you to cast your vote for Jordan White for Flathead County sheriff. —John Embry, Kalispell