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?
Ryan Zinke
What is your age?
62
Where do you live?
Whitefish, MT
What is your education background?
Bachelor of Science in Geology: University of Oregon
Masters in Business Administration: National University
Masters of Science in Global Leadership: University of San Diego
Please list your current and previous occupations.
United States Navy SEAL
Montana State Senator
Business Consultant & Small Business Owner
United States Congressman
Secretary of the Interior
What motivated you to seek a seat in the U.S. House?
I’m a Reagan optimist. I wouldn’t take on the job if it weren’t fixable – and it is. There’s no doubt our country is in trouble under Biden. Inflation is at double digits, costing Montanans $26,000 since Biden took office. [EDITOR'S NOTE: According to a report from Congress' Joint Economic Committee, Republicans, the average Montana household has spent $27,530 more due to inflation since January 2021.] Illegal immigration is pushing our schools, law enforcement and public services to breaking point, and Mexican cartels are targeting Indian Country. Our enemies are emboldened, our allies are under attack, and China is measuring the drapes in Taiwan. When I first sought re-election in 2022, there was full liberal control of all three chambers that added trillions to our national debt, expanded government overreach, and pushed inflation even higher. Luckily Montana helped flip the House and we’ve put up a firewall to stop the worst coming from the Biden-Schumer agenda like the so-called Inflation Reduction Act, electric vehicle mandates, and further COVID “relief” spending. Proactively, we got a lot done too. I voted for – and the House passed – legislation to secure the border, but it’s dead in the Senate. Same with the Lower Energy Costs Act and Protect Women and Girls Sports Act. The problems we face are fixable but it takes the Senate working with the House.
What, if anything, should Congress do to ease impacts of inflation and cost of living in Montana?
Bidenomics has cost Montana families an average of $26,000 more per household since 2021. Every economist agrees - the inflation is being driven by high energy costs and years of uncontrolled government spending. I sit on appropriations, and the 12 individual spending bills the committee sent to the House Floor cut spending by double digits across the federal government. We cut some agencies by 40%. But cutting is not enough. We also need to grow our way out of this, and that’s where cutting red tape and regulatory reform come in. I voted for the $600 billion tax cuts package to help small businesses hit by high interest rates, encourage lower income families to get back in the workforce, and provide relief to folks just trying to buy gas, groceries and rent.
Under what circumstances should Congress authorize troops to be sent to war?
I’ve been to war for my country. I’ve led men into battle, and I’ve consoled the families of warriors who lost their lives in defense of our great nation. War should never be declared lightly. While there is no litmus test for when Congress should declare war, I stand firmly that if we send our sons and daughters to combat, we do so with the package to ensure they win - and win decisively on the field of battle. That means they have the appropriate force package, munitions, the right rules of engagement, and that we are not providing aid to the enemy while our troops and allies are under fire – as is in the case in Israel. There also needs to be a clear plan for American troops on the ground, metrics for success, and a clearly defined plan and objective. That does not exist in this administration. The diplomatic and national security failures of this Administration from Afghanistan to Israel to Ukraine and soon to be Taiwan have dire consequences that Americans will be paying for decades, if not generations.
What changes, if any, should be made to the way elections and campaigns are funded?
I am 100% opposed to efforts to publicly fund political campaigns.
What, if anything, should Congress do to improve the nation's immigration laws and security at the southern border?
I just got back from a visit to the southern border and one thing is for sure – there is no border. There’s checkpoints where illegal migrants go to get a shower, a meal, and a piece of paper telling them to report for a court date in 6 years. Then they get a bus ticket to anywhere they want and sometimes they get moved right here to Montana. The executive orders Biden signed on day one of his Administration reversed what we spent four years building under President Trump. Biden created this crisis and as a result crime, sex trafficking, drug trafficking and fentanyl overdoses are skyrocketing in Montana. One of my early votes in 2023 was for the Secure the Border Act. It ends catch and release, supports ICE, resumes construction of the wall, holds Mexico accountable and reinstates the successful Remain in Mexico policy. The House has done their jobs, the Senate has neglected theirs for more than a year by not taking it up. But the easiest solution is for the President to do his job. Biden is derelict in his duty and has ignored the Constitutional authority he has to fix the crisis he’s created.
What, if anything, should Congress do to address climate change?
There is no debate the climate is changing; man is an influence. I think where there’s debate on it is what that influence is, and what can and should we do about it. My view has always been that promoting clean air and clean water and reducing our dependence on foreign energy is a positive step forward. Nobody produces energy more efficiently or cleaner than right here in the United States. When I was Secretary we had the biggest production year on record and it was also the best safety year and we lowered emissions. So, the answer is not to cut domestic energy production, the answer is to allow the private sector to continually innovate to make energy more sustainable and efficient while lowering costs and improving safety.
What, if anything, should Congress do to ensure Social Security and Medicare benefits meet the needs of older adults?
When Americans work our economy is strong. Our communities prosper and the programs that rely on strong employment like Medicare and Social Security are strong. Not to mention, the quality of life for those who get jobs improves for the long term. But now, well past COVID, our workforce has shrunk to levels not seen since the 1970s, far lower than during the Great Recession of 2008-2009. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Here is U.S. Labor Force Participation Rate from 1948 – March, 2024.] A third of men are out of the work force — the lowest in recorded history — thanks in-part to the massive welfare state Biden created under COVID. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Here is U.S. Labor Force Participation Rate for men from 1948 – March, 2024. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, the labor force participation rate among U.S. men reached its lowest point in April 2020. Records started in 1948.] Work requirements aren’t new — they were implemented in 1996 and helped pull people up and out of poverty and give them the experience needed to build a career. It encourages independence through employment and makes able-bodied Americans a part of our economy. Expanding the workforce also has the added benefit of improving the supply chain and strengthening Social Security and Medicare by feeding into these programs.
What should be the top priorities when managing public land?
The most important thing is making sure our public lands are not sold or transferred, which is why I introduced the Public Lands in Public Hands Act. Second, we need better management following the multiple-use mandate of the BLM and USFS. That means balancing public access, recreation, resource development, timber harvests and conservation for the greatest good over the longest term. We’ve seen what happens when land is not managed for multiple use. Case in point, look at our forests. Driving through the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, Glacier National Park, or the Lolo you’ll see dead and dying timber and forest floors that are a literal tinderbox. Every year we watch our forests burn to the ground when commonsense forest management techniques such as targeted thinning, prescribed burns, and sustainable yield logging is proven to increase fire resiliency. Rather than implement a forest management plan to pull out dead and dying timber and optimize sustainable board feet limits, Biden bowed to environmental zealots and all but stopped managing our forests. Mills are closing across western Montana because of this. This sort of regulatory mismanagement and rationed access are tools the far left use to shut down access to public lands.