Auto dealer wants new leadership

Whitefish businessman Don “K” Kaltschmidt is running in state Senate District 3 because he wants new Republican leadership in Helena that can unite the party’s conservative and moderate wings in Helena.

“The last session, I was — as a Republican, as a Montanan, as a taxpayer — I was very disappointed with the way things were going down in Helena,” Kaltschmidt said during an interview at one of his Whitefish car dealerships.

“When they went into the session, [the leadership] alienated part of the party. We have a party of a big tent, and if we get caught up in our ideological concerns and can’t bring people in ... we’re going to have problems building coalitions on bills that are a priority of the party.”

Kaltschmidt announced his candidacy in January, pitting him against current House Majority Leader Keith Regier, R-Kalispell, in the June 7 primary election.

Sen. Bruce Tutvedt, R-Kalispell, currently holds the office but is ineligible for re-election after representing the district for the maximum of two consecutive four-year terms. Senate District 3 extends from Whitefish to the far northwest corner of Kalispell, including the West Valley.

Kaltschmidt never has held public office, but said his conservative, blue-collar upbringing, a three-year stint in the Marines and his experience building a successful auto sales business equip him with the skills necessary to bring together a Republican caucus that split on some of last year’s most contentious issues.

“The two factions could have gotten together – they weren’t that far apart,” Kaltschmidt said. “I’ve negotiated many deals. I’ve bought and sold many things. That’s what I’m good at. And I can do that for the people of Montana.”

While calling his primary opponent “a good conservative,” Kaltschmidt said Regier bears some responsibility, as a member of the Republican leadership, for the party’s failure to accomplish its major goals in the 2015 legislative session.

“His record speaks for itself,” he said. “When you look at the Republican agenda and what happened last session, he was in the leadership. You have to own up to that.”

He said he opposed the version of the water rights compact with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes that was ratified by the state last year, despite the staunch opposition of many in the Republican leadership.

Kaltschmidt referred to the dispute between the city of Whitefish and Flathead County over the “doughnut,” a planning area outside Whitefish city limits, to illustrate the gridlock that characterized the compact debate.

Saying Whitefish “overreached” during the dispute, he likened its role to the Republican leadership’s unwillingness to find a compromise bill that would have been palatable to all members of his party.

“They [Whitefish] wanted to have everything, rather than compromising and letting the county have their say,” he said. “And they ended up with nothing.”

He also called the 2015 Legislature’s failure to pass an infrastructure bill “inexcusable.” A spending bill to address infrastructure needs across the state – and particularly in the Bakken area – was identified as a priority on both sides of the aisle, but failed to pass the House after the Republican leadership rallied their party in opposition.

He hasn’t ruled out using bonding to pay for part of the infrastructure bill, and said he would work to secure funding for deteriorating roads and bridges in his district.

Kaltschmidt said he won’t budge on his pro-life convictions and commitment to gun and property rights, but conceded he is still developing his policy views on many statewide issues likely to emerge during the legislative session next year. Lowering taxes and reducing the regulatory burden are among his goals if elected, and he added he would work to strengthen access to public lands.

Kaltschmidt singled out the business equipment tax for repeal next session and said he also would like to make property taxes more reliant on the value of structures rather than land values.

He also would like to revisit last year’s expansion of Medicaid in the state.

“It was the biggest expansion of government in the state’s history,” he said. “I think even the people that brought it up would be open to tweaks. They were concerned about rural hospitals, and I think if we could have handled those concerns we would have gotten something better for the state.”

Ultimately, he said his strength lies in his ability to get along with people.

“I get along with everybody, no matter what their political philosophy is,” he said. “I know how to lead people, and that’s what the people in my district are looking for.”

Reporter Sam Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.