MEMO: Tim Sheehy Is a Wealthy Out-of-Stater Here to Play Cowboy Who Montanans Will Reject in November
TO: Interested Parties
FROM: Hannah Rehm, Senior Communications Advisor for the Montana Democratic Party
Today, Tim Sheehy filed for office in Helena and made it official: The Montana Republican Party’s candidate is a scandal-plagued, rich out-of-stater who Montana voters are going to reject in November.
Rosendale may be out of the race, but the damage to Sheehy has already been done. Sheehy is fundamentally unelectable in Montana, thanks to his very recent move to the state, his exaggerations about his “cowboy” credentials, and conflicts of interest with his government-funded company. Sheehy has failed to get buy-in from Republicans across Montana, in part driven by his astounding admissions of his own toxic policy proposals that disqualify him to general election voters – like transferring federal public lands and calling for the “pure privatization” of health care – and because of major unforced campaignblunders.
Local Republicans have repeatedly voiced their dissatisfaction with Mitch McConnell recruit Sheehy, and now Rosendale’s supporters now have nowhere to turn – underscoring a fractured and damaged Montana Republican Party that is in complete disarray heading into the general.
TIM SHEEHY’S SCANDAL-PLAGUED CAMPAIGN
If you remember anything about Tim Sheehy it should be his three ‘C’s:
CARPETBAGGER: Sheehy, who bought luxury properties across the state upon moving to Montana less than a decade ago, embodies exactly the type of ultrarich newcomer that Montanans are frustrated with as their own cost of living skyrockets and families get priced out of their homes.
Wall Street Journal: Montana Has Had It With Rich Outsiders. Will That Help Jon Tester Win Re-Election? “[Montanans] are fed up with monied outsiders streaming into the state and blame them for driving up prices, taking land and eroding Montana’s rugged culture.”
HuffPost: Meet The Millionaire 'Cowboy' And Ex-Navy SEAL Being Primed To Take On Sen. Jon Tester “But Sheehy is more wealthy businessman than rugged cattleman, with thousands of acres of land and multimillion-dollar properties on Flathead Lake and in the lavish resort community of Big Sky. A Minnesota native, his Montana roots are still relatively young — something that can create headaches when running for public office in Big Sky Country.”
Daily Montanan: Senate candidate Tim Sheehy falsely states more bears than people in Montana “Experts in the state said Sheehy’s bear comment was wildly off the mark.”
COWBOY COSPLAY: Sheehy greatly exaggerated his “cowboy” credentials – the same cardinal sin in Montana politics that toppled Matt Rosendale’s bid for U.S. Senate in 2018. Reporting found that since buying ranch land a few years ago with the proceeds from the sale of his drone tech company for $350 million, Sheehy has used it for brand collaborations and magazine photoshoots. Sheehy “does not oversee the ranch’s day-to-day operations.”
Vanity Fair: “Wannabe Cowboy”: This GOP Senate Candidate’s Rancher Bona Fides Are Coming Under Scrutiny “‘We call it a wannabe cowboy,’ Matt Rains, a fifth-generation Montanan rancher, says of Sheehy, whose campaign did not respond to a request for comment. ‘He bought his way in—and we’ve lost a lot of great ranchers to rich out-of-staters buying up land to add to their little collections, just like Sheehy has.’”
Daily Beast: He’s Running for Senate as a Montana Rancher. He’s Skipped Out on the Rancher Taxes “Tim Sheehy hasn't registered his cattle or farm animals in years with the state [...] A department official replied that Sheehy, his business partners, and Little Belt Cattle Company had never reported any livestock with the government.”
Business Insider: GOP Senate candidate uses Kentucky photo to tout his support for Montana agriculture — then quickly replaces it when asked about it
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST: Sheehy is getting rich off of government contracts, which presents enormous conflicts of interest as he campaigns for a job that would oversee that very funding his company depends on. Sheehy has a history of using his personal relationships in Washington to secure federal favors for his business and himself.
NBC News: Montana GOP Senate candidate keeps his CEO job — but his company won’t say how he avoids conflicts
Bloomberg Gov: Key GOP Senate Recruit Seeks Job Overseeing His Largest Customer “Candidate Tim Sheehy runs a company that gets most of its money from federal government contracts, presenting potential conflict-of-interest questions that US Senate hopefuls usually don’t face.”
Daily Beast: This Top GOP Recruit Has a Swampy Connection to a Trumpy Rep “Sheehy and his family have donated nearly $50,000 to Zinke’s campaigns since last January, all while Zinke has pushed legislation that would benefit Bridger.”
Business Insider: GOP Senate candidate plans to steer book sale money to a group that lobbies for his industry, teeing up potential conflict of interest
American Journal News: Follow The Money: Tim Sheehy Takes Thousands From Drug Company Lobbyists
Business Insider: Montana GOP Senate candidate would be in the top 10 richest lawmakers — and his investments are sure to irk some conservatives
HuffPost: 'Tough On China' GOP Senate Candidate Sold Off Chinese-Tied Stocks
TIM SHEEHY’S TOXIC POLICY PROPOSALS ARE BAD FOR MONTANANS
Sheehy has repeatedly demonstrated how out of touch he is with Montana as he puts forth toxic policy proposals that are deeply unpopular in the state. Sheehy called to transfer public lands, a stance widely known to make it easier to sell off those lands to private interests and wealthy newcomers like him. He’s advocated for the “pure privatization” of the U.S. health care system, which would dismantle Medicare, shutter Montana’s rural hospitals, and overturn the Affordable Care Act.
HuffPost: Montana GOP Senate Candidate Embraces A Toxic Position On Public Lands Sheehy said “‘local control [of public lands] has to be returned’ [...] ‘This is not like an issue that is on the margin for Montana voters. They are very clearly against transferring or selling off public lands.’”
Semafor: Republican Senate frontrunner in Montana calls for returning ‘healthcare to pure privatization’ “‘In my opinion we need to return healthcare to pure privatization,’ [Sheehy] said.”
Montana Independent: Anti-abortion group endorses Republican Tim Sheehy for Montana US Senate seat “He has touted the endorsement of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, which works to elect anti-abortion candidates across the country and demands its endorsees support a nationwide abortion ban at 15 weeks’ gestation.”
MONTANA REPUBLICANS “HOLD THEIR NOSE” AS THEY’RE SADDLED WITH SHEEHY, THE “D.C. ESTABLISHMENT” CANDIDATE
Rosendale’s exit from the GOP Senate primary hasn’t changed one key dynamic: Montana Republicans are deeply skeptical of Mitch McConnell’s handpicked candidate. Montana Republicans have made it known that they view Sheehy as the “D.C. establishment’s senate candidate.”
Even after Rosendale’s exit, local Republicans across Montana are divided and fractured. At the February MT GOP kick off event, Rosendale reportedly “received the loudest and longest standing ovation of the event. When Gianforte endorsed Sheehy he was met with a smattering of boos and some left my table throwing down their napkins.” Multiple Republican central committee chairs and party officials went on the record after Rosendale dropped out to flame Tim Sheehy, calling him “anointed” by Mitch McConnell and saying his candidacy was a “big story about Washington, D.C., versus the people of Montana.”
Vanity Fair: “Wannabe Cowboy”: This GOP Senate Candidate’s Rancher Bona Fides Are Coming Under Scrutiny “Sheehy has an impressive resumé, but he ain’t MAGA,” said one Montana Republican operative. “I don’t really know what he believes and from what I can tell, he doesn’t know either.”
Helena Independent Record: 37 GOP state legislators, including leadership, call on Rosendale for Senate
Daily Caller: KOOPMAN: The GOP Establishment Is Doing Its Best To Lose A Winnable Senate Race
Rosendale spent months making the case that Tim Sheehy has no place representing Montana in the Senate and he was right: Sheehy is an out-of-state multimillionaire completely out of touch with Montana’s way of life.
