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Montana politics, elections and legislative news

Montana Congressional Delegation Reacts To Trump's Inauguration

Today marks the inauguration of Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States.
Michael-Vadon (CC-BY-SA-2)
Today marks the inauguration of Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States.

Montana’s senators offered their reactions to the inauguration of President Donald Trump today. Here’s the complete statement Republican Steve Daines sent to the media.

"As I watched President Trump take the oath of office today,  I had a renewed sense of encouragement about the future of our country," said Daines. "Today is the day where we start to return control of our government back to the people it serves, and create policies that promote growth, innovation and more good paying jobs."

Democrat Jon Tester had a different take. Here’s a portion of the statement his office provided.

"To those of you who wanted to shake up Washington, I’m with you," Tester said. "It is time we clean this place up. It’s time that Congress put aside the partisanship, and the political games and get to work for the people of Montana. It’s time that we held Washington accountable, and it’s time to ensure that folks in all corner of our state have a government that works for them.

"And to those of you who are feeling uncertain, who are concerned about the direction our country could be headed, I’m with you, too," Tester continued. "You have my promise that I will continue to be a responsible voice, providing an important check and balance on the new administration. You have my promise that I will fight to protect your healthcare, you education, your public lands, your clean air and water, and your paycheck."

Congressman Ryan Zinke posted this to Facebook:

“Today Donald J. Trump became the 45th President of the United States. It is a truly remarkable day in American history and I look forward to the next four years.”

Zinke is President Trump’s appointee to be Secretary of Interior. On Tuesday, he testified for nearly four hours in front of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee as part of the confirmation process. There is no set date for when the Senate will vote on Zinke’s confirmation.
 

Eric Whitney is NPR's Mountain West/Great Plains Bureau Chief, and was the former news director for Montana Public Radio.
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