Former Montana Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger launched his bid for the U.S. Senate Wednesday by comparing the Tea Party to the Taliban.
“We need to challenge the Tea Party representatives who like the Taliban shut our country down,” Bohlinger said, according to the Billings Gazette.
Former Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger, 77, announced he's running for the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2013, in Helena, Mont. Bohlinger is running for the 2014 Democratic nomination against current Lt. Gov. John Walsh and Dirk Adams of Wilsall. (AP)
Bohlinger further compared last month's government shutdown to the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and to the Sept. 11 terror attacks, the newspaper reported.
The likely Republican candidate for the seat is Rep. Steve Daines, who voted to delay Obamacare at the end of September, which resulted in the Senate rejection that led to a government shutdown.
Bollinger made his announcement at a Democratic Party dinner Tuesday night when someone asked him about his plans. He elaborated on the matter Wednesday.
Bohlinger actually served in the Montana state legislature as a Republican, but became a Democrat when Brian Schweitzer chose him as his running mate for the lieutenant governor spot. The bipartisan team won in 2004 and again in 2008.
Bohlinger called for bringing U.S. troops back from the Middle East and for changing the Senate filibuster rules.
He won't be able to count on the support of his party in the primary: the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is backing current Lt. Gov. John Walsh.
“I really feel it’s inappropriate for the Democratic Party to choose sides in a Democratic primary,” Bohlinger said, according to the Gazette.
(H/T: The Hill)
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