HELENA – Montana legislators promised Monday to spend the session working together and to drop the partisan acrimony that has plagued past Legislatures, despite looming policy differences.
House Republicans and Democrats elected new House Speaker Mark Blasdel, a 36-year-old restaurant owner from Somers, without opposition. Blasdel promised to respect different viewpoints and encouraged fellow lawmakers “to make this session more about work, and less about politics.”
Blasdel takes over a House with 40 freshmen, nearly half of the chamber’s 100 representatives. Republicans hold a 61-39 majority in the House and a 29-21 majority in the Senate, and some rank-and-file conservatives are hoping to use the advantage in the 63rd Legislature to advance favored proposals.
But the governor’s office remains in Democratic hands, with Steve Bullock being sworn in earlier in the day with a promise to work with lawmakers “regardless of the partisan labels.” The lawmakers start work this week analyzing his proposed budget, which is packed full of plenty of campaign trail differences.
Bullock wants to expand Medicaid using money allocated to the state under the federal health care law, an idea opposed by many Republicans opposed to it. The Democratic governor is seeking homeowner tax rebates and elimination of the business equipment tax for smaller firms; Republicans want a tax rate reduction that would also include the wealthy.
Other differences remain on many sticky issues: from wolf and bison management to fixing state pensions. But on Monday, both sides were trying to strike a friendly chord.
Secretary of State Linda McCulloch, a former Democratic legislator, urged the Republican legislative majority not to press the advantage against a backdrop of a veto she hoped Democrats wouldn’t count on.
“Will this chamber be known for compromising, or for bickering?” she asked during the House swearing-in ceremony. “Just because one party has the votes to outweigh another party, doesn’t mean they should abuse their authority. Just because another party has the power of the veto doesn’t mean they should rely on it.”
McCulloch had both sides take several minutes to walk across the dividing aisle and introduce each other. New House Majority Leader Gordon Vance, of Bozeman, told the chamber’s many newcomers that he looks for bipartisanship.
“I think we can work together and get some things done for the people that sent us here,” Vance said.
The message was the same in the Senate, where Republican Sen. Jeff Essmann, of Billings, was formally voted the chamber’s president.
Essmann took his position at the lectern and said the Legislature must use the voters’ tax money efficiently, debate relevant issues and build a relationship with Bullock that is based on trust and respect, and not controversy.
“We were not sent here for political showmanship or partisan bickering,” Essmann said.
Senate Minority Leader Jon Sesso, of Butte, called on members from both political parties to respect each other, set aside their campaign sound bites and “impart the statesmanship that Montanans expect of us.”
“We can have different views and we can have different beliefs, but we can work together to find common ground,” Sesso said.