Matt Rosendale Drops Senate Bid - After Less Than A Week
Credit: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
February 17, 2024

You've got to hand to these Freedom Caucus members in today's Republican Party, it's never a dull moment. Usually it's a stupid, asinine moment that constantly embarrasses the county but hey, at least it's never dull. And in a true sense, that is what it's like in this Trump era we've been in since 2015.

Republicans wanted no part of Rosendale after he burned them once against Sen. John Tester in 2018, losing a Senate seat in deep-red Montana but apparently Rosendale never got the memo and pressed on anyway. His campaign was short-lived.

It's unclear what Rosendale's next stupidity election will be, having announced for the Senate he'll now have to face at least seven other Republicans in the primary for District Two in Montana if he decides to run again there. And he'll have to file soon as the deadline is March 11 for the June 4 primary.

Source: Politico

GOP Rep. Matt Rosendale is dropping his Montana Senate bid less than a week after he officially launched it, he confirmed to POLITICO.

Rosendale had publicly explored a campaign for months, teasing his entrance into the race in conversations with like-minded Republicans. But by the time he got in, it appeared already too late: Just hours after his entry, former President Donald Trump endorsed veteran Tim Sheehy. Rosendale said he concluded his path was irrevocably severed by the former president.

“As everyone knows, I have planned to run for the US Senate and to win both the primary and the general election,” Rosendale said in a statement. “However, the day I announced, President Trump then announced that he was endorsing a different candidate.”

Montana is a top target for Republicans looking to take control of the Senate. Rosendale finally launched his long-anticipated bid last Friday as Republicans look to unseat Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), one of just two Democratic senators running for reelection states Trump won in 2020.

The shocking reversal from the conservative lawmaker is a boon to national Republicans, who are backing Sheehy and eager to avoid a damaging primary. Rosendale conceded in his statement that in Montana, Trump’s endorsement of Sheehy would be too much to overcome.

And Rosendale's mostly accurate reasons why he quit. You'd think he would have known all this before committing to the race ahead of time, but that's not these MAGA congress people roll.

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