MTPR is airing interviews with candidates running for federal office in 2026. MTPR's Victoria Traxler speaks with Ryan Busse, a Democrat running for Montana's western U.S. House seat.
Victoria Traxler: To start off, I'd like to ask what makes you the most qualified candidate for this job?
Ryan Busse: Well, yeah, thanks so much for having me here. I am running for the western seat, Montana one. I've, you know, I feel like this place has made me a better person and I owe it to this state to pay it back. And I've raised a family here, two boys, who I'm very worried about whether they're gonna be able to have the same kind of chances that Sarah and I had. I've lived in the Flathead Valley for 31 years. I've helped grow a business there. And obviously I ran a campaign once and I want to put what I learned back to work. And so those are the things I think that make me qualify. And I think most importantly, I believe that I owe it to the state to pay it back.
Victoria Traxler: What previous experience would you bring to this position in Congress?
Ryan Busse: I have been a policy advocate. Obviously, I'm a big public lands policy advocate, but also I've been a team builder and a business builder, and I really appreciate bringing people together. I also think it's time that Democrats be a strong advocate, an unabashed advocate for the things that we say are important. I'm a little tired of too many words and not enough action and on things like universal healthcare, which I believe the United States is a long time behind just about all other industrialized nations. I think it's time for Democrats to lead on that. And I wanna be somebody who does lead. I don't have a lot of patience for inaction. I don't have a lot of patience for the sort of political doublespeak that we've heard so often – I mean, honestly, from both parties. I'm kinda through with that. So I'd like to be a strong advocate for the things that matter.
Victoria Traxler: Now, the federal government shut down over an impasse between Republicans and Democrats over subsidies for the Affordable Care Act. How would you have approached that vote?
Ryan Busse: I think that that was a good vote to make. In other words, I think the government should have shut down over that. We don't seem to have any problems funding agencies like ICE and DHS, which by the way is funded to the tune of $191 billion. $192 billion, that's more than all but 14 militaries on the face of the planet, that's much more than the U.S. Marine Corps, and I think it's reprehensible that we can find money to fund that sort of ‘masked officers in the street’ but we can't fund health care and tax credits for American citizens. Seventy-seven thousand Montanans depend on the ACA for care, so I think it's right to fight for those things and we should be doing more of it, not less.
Victoria Traxler: In your conversations with the folks who live in Montana, what is a top priority for constituents in your district?
Ryan Busse: I haven't had a single event – and I've had a lot of events – I haven't had a single one where health care isn't number one for folks. Republicans, independents, Democrats, people are, it's frightening to say this, but they're almost deathly scared of what's going to happen to health care, what's gonna happen to their family. That's number one. And obviously housing affordability, housing cost. You know, my two boys, I'm worried about whether they're going to be able to afford a house here. So that's number two, those two things.
Victoria Traxler: Now, the Trump administration made a huge push to downsize the federal government. Are you happy with the results of that effort?
Ryan Busse: I'm for making government more efficient, but not in that way. We're overworking our federal workforce, we should want our federal workforce to be efficient, but they have to be there for us. They provide services for the constituents and I run into so many people who can't get correct services. We're not down in the Big Hole, which is part of the district, we have incredible water quality problems, and have we made that better by increasing the federal workforce there and measuring water quality? Doing the sort of nutrient load testing that needs to be done? No, we've made it worse. We've pulled federal employees and fisheries biologists and water quality specialists off that. That could have tremendous, unbelievable deleterious effects for the Big Hole valley and so many of the businesses that depend on it there. So no, I'm not happy with it. It's been a dark period for lots of folks in this state for the last few months, or a little over a year here. I want you to know that there's help coming, that we can win this thing, that we could do things better than what we've been doing. We don't have to jump into foreign wars. We don't have to make affordability worse. We don't have to shy away from fixing health care. Those are choices that were made and we can unmake them and I'm excited to get to work on it and excited to win this campaign. So I appreciate your time.
Victoria Traxler: Thank you, Ryan. We appreciate yours.
- Interviews with candidates running for federal office in Montana in 2026.
- Q&A: Kimberly Persico, independent western district U.S. House candidate
- State Supreme Court dismisses challenge to 'dark money' initiative
- Q&A: Sam Forstag, Democratic western district U.S. House candidate
- Republicans embrace Trump; Education or electioneering? Will Dems back Bodnar?
- Montana politicos talk democracy, 2026 elections at Helena forum
