Sam Forstag is exactly the congressman Montana needs right now. I first met him back in 2021 at the Montana Legislature, where I was serving as a Republican representative. Sam was working as an advocate for a Democratic-leaning group, facing a Legislature that was 66% Republican. Even with the odds against him, Sam worked incredibly hard to make sure his side was heard and understood.
He impressed me right away with how much he knew about the issues. He fully understood both sides of a debate. He could strongly argue his own points while still respecting the conservative perspective. Sam is always willing to sit down, share information, and talk honestly with lawmakers from both political parties.
As a Republican, I disagreed with Sam on some of the issues. But even though we disagreed, we were able to have reasonable and constructive conversations. Sam proves this commitment to teamwork by regularly hosting bipartisan town halls across the state with local Republicans, including me, to listen to our community’s concerns directly. Sam is integrating issues raised in these town halls to further shape and refine his policies. That kind of honesty and teamwork is exactly what is missing in Washington today.
Speaking of honesty, let’s look at those political ads attacking Sam on property taxes. Look at the actual facts. The tax ideas his opponents are talking about were poorly thought-out bills that were easily killed in Republican-controlled committees, mostly by clean 12-0 votes. Those proposals would have decimated your local fire department, police department, and schools. Trying to twist his record into a tax-hike scare tactic is just typical political noise.
In my opinion, our current representative, Ryan Zinke, has failed to keep Montana as his priority. He is up there just rubber-stamping everything President Donald Trump wants, or worse, remaining silent. And given that the president’s policies are essentially poorly vetted whims, Montana citizens deserve better. And better is not going to happen if Aaron Flint gets to Washington. Flint can’t deny that he will be another “yes man” who does pretty much everything that Trump tells him.
Instead, let’s send Sam Forstag to Congress. He understands working Montanans. He will work to keep taxes low on working people. Sam agrees with eliminating the taxes on overtime and tips that were passed this year. Furthermore, he wants to make those cuts permanent, rather than letting them expire in four years.
Sam has some good ideas for creating more housing that is affordable for the average worker. He supports purchasing land that is held in a trust, so that the homebuyer does not have to also purchase the land, which keeps the total cost lower. Sam supports workforce development, so that we can give our high school graduates and displaced workers the skills they need to succeed. He understands that there are regulations out there that slow down how long it takes to build a house. Using his ability to work with both parties, I am confident Sam can help push through housing reforms that will lower the cost of building new homes.
Sam also understands using our forests to benefit everyone. He encourages reasonable timber harvests with quicker turnarounds on logging proposals. Sam knows that roads are needed in forests, and he understands that there are a wide variety of recreational users, including hunters, hikers, ATVs riders and bicyclists. He will make sure our forests remain open to all of us.
If you are tired of politicians who just follow orders from their party bosses, this election is your chance to send a message. We do not have to accept angry politics. We need to elect leaders, like Sam, who listen to all Montanans, think for themselves, and protect our way of life. Vote for Sam Forstag.
Brian Putnam is a former Republican state representative from Kalispell.