Dear Senator Tester,
  Thanks for your reponse letter.Like you I too farm, yet I’m uncertain about this climate change that you mention seeing. I’m lost in trying to figure out what’s positive for the people of Montana if this tax is forced upon us.Your letter spoke of your concern for higher energy cost and that you are working at expanding home-grown energy. GOOD! Then I take it you are in favor of oil shale (local MT) and coal mining, plus drilling in Alaska. All home-grown in my book. Are you in favor of those?
  Back to Cap & Trade. Spain has it and is trying to get rid of it. It brought unemployment of 18% to their country. That would be a deal breaker for Montana’s economy. Taxing the energy used by people in Rural America too in a no go. Cap & Trade can increase the cost of gas by 55 cents a gallon. If I need to drive the 86 miles (1 way) from Libby to my Cardiologist in Kalispell how is Cap & Trade going to help me? I have to do the drive, your tax isn’t going to make me conserve energy. It will only cost me more in my life, I have no choice.
  Now let’s see how Cap & Trade will increase the cost of EVERYTHING Americans need to buy such as food. Let’s take a simple loaf of bread as an example. The cost of buying seeds will go up because transportation cost will rise. The fuel that is needed to run farm equipment will go up. So you can expect those production cost to be passed along to consumers. The transportation between farm to market will go up because of that pesky tax increase AGAIN on gas. We have the cost of taking the raw product from market to production. Baking the bread cost energy so that’s another bit of change that will be passed along to consumers. Again we’ll have transportation cost from bakery to trucking the bread to stores. So how much do you think Tax & Trade will increase the cost of a simple loaf of bread? Well multiple that for EVERYTHING we buy in America. Especially for those of us in Rural America.
  It’s horrible to think of what fuel cost will add up to during Montana’s long cold winters. Cap & Trade will increase home heating. Last winter was a real cold one, so much for the junk science of Global Warming. Where in this Cap & Trade is the protection to “consumers and small businesses” your letter to me speaks of?
  I think you need to sit down and speak with your family Senator. Ask them if this Tax & Trade makes common sense in their everyday lives. Can you honestly look them in the eye and tell your family that this is a good thing? If you still feel this is something you have to vote for purely for political reasons then while you are sitting there with your loved ones, tell them that you have failed the People of Montana and they should expect that you will lose your job as Senator and you’ll be a farmer again.
  I’m part of the voting public and will work tirelessly at bringing you back to the farm if you vote for this Cap & Trade..
  Most sincerely, D.A. Shkursky, United States Taxpayer