We are gathering information from all statewide candidates as a resource for the 2024 Primary Elections. Responses were limited to 200 words per question. Political attacks may have been removed, but otherwise, the responses are published unedited.
What is your full name as it will appear on ballots?
Monica Tranel
What is your age?
57
Where do you live?
Missoula, MT
What is your education background?
Billings Central Catholic High School
Bachelor of Arts from Gonzaga University
Law Degree from Rutgers University–Camden
Please list your current and previous occupations.
Trial Attorney
What motivated you to seek a seat in the U.S. House?
Montana is my home. I don’t have another one. I live here, work here, pay taxes here, and feel and live the concerns of my neighbors, family and friends - my fellow Montanans. I believe deeply in representative democracy, and I know that Montanans are ready for a representative who shows up and serves for those of us who live here and call Montana home. I’ve been doing that work every day, traveling across this district to hear from working families about the challenges they’re facing. I’ve spent my career standing up to monopoly corporations and hedge funds trying to take advantage of Montanans. That’s exactly how I’ll serve in the U.S. Congress to make housing affordable, grow the middle class, and protect privacy and freedoms.
What, if anything, should Congress do to ease impacts of inflation and cost of living in Montana?
Rising costs, especially housing costs, are out of control and lowering them will be my first priority in Congress. It’s the number one issue I hear about from voters in the community workshops, Minivan Meetups, and listening tour events I’ve held across the district. Congress can help Montana families afford a place to live by providing more financing for housing construction, tax credits to help young families buy homes, and by changing the tax code to discourage housing speculation.
I’ll also work to bring down everyday costs for families by holding monopolies, giant corporate interests, and prescription drug manufacturers accountable for price gouging, stopping hedge funds from buying up houses here in Montana and driving up home costs, and holding utility companies accountable for raising rates to pay for their bad business decisions.
Under what circumstances should Congress authorize troops to be sent to war?
I am running for Congress to restore a functional Article I branch of government and get to work making hard decisions. This is one of the most important decisions Congress must make, but Washington politicians have spent decades running from it and abandoning their responsibility to our troops. I will support repealing the 2001 and 2002 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force that are decades outdated and have been misused. We must restore Congress’ constitutional responsibility to determine this authorization, rather than ceding it to the executive branch.
I will approach these decisions with the seriousness and gravity our troops deserve. It is impossible to comment on hypotheticals, but I will ensure that the American people have a clear national interest at stake that requires the use of force without other avenues being a realistic option before taking that step. In Congress, I will invest in our military and invest in our State Department to ensure that diplomacy and democracy thrive.
What changes, if any, should be made to the way elections and campaigns are funded?
Campaign finance must be reformed for our democracy to survive. There are too many purchased politicians in Washington who are controlled by corporate and special interests that bankroll their campaigns. We need to get bought-and-paid-for politicians out of office and get money out of politics.
I support overturning Citizens United so we can ensure the people are the only ones influencing our elected officials. In Congress, I’ll work for Montanans in office, and every elected official should be accountable to the people - and only the people - they represent.
We also need policies that make it impossible for politicians to enrich themselves with the public decisions they make. I support proposals to ban anyone from Congress from actively trading stocks and I support HR 336, which requires everyone in Congress, their spouses, and their dependent children to put their stocks in a qualified blind trust.
What, if anything, should Congress do to improve the nation's immigration laws and security at the southern border?
We have a real crisis at our borders, and we need to cut the BS and take action. In the past three years, fentanyl apprehensions along the U.S.-Mexico border increased over 800%. The Bipartisan Border Security bill that was proposed in the Senate is a real step forward:
● It gives the President authority to shut down the border, immediately
● Provides 1,300 additional Border Patrol agents.
● And critically, it cracks down on the flow of fentanyl by adding 100 cutting-edge inspection machines to detect and stop illegal drugs, closing the border to traffickers, and targeting cartels at their source.
That’s why this bill is endorsed by the men and women in the Border Patrol on the front lines, defending our country. In Congress, I will work to secure our border and protect Montanans. I will never play politics with our
safety.
What, if anything, should Congress do to address climate change?
Hotter summers, increased droughts, reduced snowpack, longer wildfire seasons and more wildfire smoke place our economy at risk. We must be strategic to develop the energy resilience, freedom, and security in our communities that will define our economy in the next 20 years. Western Montana has the resources and infrastructure to lead this economic growth. I have worked on water issues and energy producers throughout my professional career.
My experience advocating for farmers, ranchers, energy producers and everyday Montanans makes me a powerful voice for Montana in Congress, and a leader in water and energy policy. We can secure a livable future for all by investing in the energy transition and making sure Montana’s resources benefit Montanans.
What, if anything, should Congress do to ensure Social Security and Medicare benefits meet the needs of older adults?
In Congress, I will always protect Social Security and Medicare. Montana seniors have worked hard and paid into these programs their entire careers; they deserve better than politicians who want to rip the rug out from under them and attack their hard-earned benefits.
These programs are in jeopardy. I’ll have our seniors’ backs and ensure they’re able to retire with dignity and respect.
What should be the top priorities when managing public land?
Public lands are just that - they belong to us, the people. They grant us the opportunity to camp, fish, float, hunt, ski, snowmobile, and bike in stunning public spaces and their commercial use for mining, logging, livestock grazing and outfitting provide us with economic opportunity.
I support the approach to public lands management embodied in the Headwaters Legacy Act and the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act, that brought ranchers, loggers, recreationists, business owners, and conservationists together to chart a path forward for Montana’s resources. These are examples of neighbors working to achieve a common goal, regardless of differences and politics. In Congress I will champion these acts, and others like them.
I will work to ensure that we have access to our public lands, that they remain available and accessible to us, the people, and that wealthy out-of-state corporate interests are not able to trade out or close off our public lands, turning Montana into their own personal playground for the rich.