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Kathleen Williams

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Laurie McKinnon #5

KATHLEEN WILLIAMS

CURRENT OCCUPATION: Candidate for Congress CAMPAIGN WEBSITE: www.kathleenformontana.com

Arrow-Circle-Right Briefly introduce yourself. I am a former three-term state legislator, sportswoman, music lover, business owner and most recently, candidate for Montana’s at-large seat in the United States House of Representatives. I am a proven fighter with a 37-year career in natural resource planning and policy and have brought people together to solve tough problems.

During my six years representing eastern Gallatin County in the Montana Legislature, I am proud to have passed bills that created 200 new businesses in just three years, required insurers to stop denying care to cancer patients, and protected Montana businesses from being sued by their investors for not making decisions exclusively to maximize profit.

I am running once again to be Montana’s lone Representative in the US House. I plan to bring my tireless work ethic, integrity, and proven record of policy success to Congress.

Arrow-Circle-Right What makes you the

pro-business candidate for this

office? My plan is based on what Montana businesses, workers and entrepreneurs have told me we need to build a future where we can achieve our American dream. That means leveling the playing field for small businesses, building the economy and workforce of the future, fixing our healthcare system, fostering entrepreneurship, and cutting red tape that makes it too complicated for people who want to build a successful business.

I also have a relevant legislative record. I was elected to the Legislature as we were coming out of the Great Recession and got to work. My legislation created hundreds of new businesses which are sourcing inputs from Montana. I created a new type of corporation, fought to attract the film industry, and worked with both parties in Helena to cut taxes. My work with business earned me praise from the Montana Chamber of Commerce (thank you!).

We need steady, forward-thinking leadership at the federal level that’s focused on solutions, not grandstanding or partisanship.

Arrow-Circle-Right As the incoming at-large

member for Montana, what expertise can you draw from that will help you overcome a lack of seniority in the 435-member body?

I’ll work with people of all political stripes to get things done, like I did in Helena. I apply my entrepreneurial spirit to find creative, win-win-win solutions to difficult problems. Success can be achieved through communicating in unique and relevant ways, not toeing a party line. My former legislative colleagues asked for advice on policy, process, and how to read and write bills. I sought to hold myself and my colleagues to a higher standard - one of mutual respect. I led by example, and was respected for it. That’s how I worked with both parties to cut taxes and create a new type of corporation in Montana. Those are the kinds of solutions and the kind of approach Montanans want, and I think moving past extreme partisanship, being a good listener, and staying rooted in Montanans’ hopes, struggles and dreams is the best way to make Congress work again. I was in the minority in the legislature all three of my terms, but I still got the votes to pass significant legislation.

Arrow-Circle-Right Please detail a specific issue

related to business that your campaign is prioritizing for this office. How do you plan to address

it once elected? I am focused on ensuring we get this pandemic under control and Montanans back to work. Opportunities may be different as we come out the other side and we need to ensure we are both prepared for and involved in building the future Montana economy.

We must ensure we have both the jobs of the future and the workforce developed and prepared for those jobs. Prior to the pandemic, businesses were telling me this was one of their biggest issues and frustrations - attracting and retaining quality employees. This means working with our educational institutions, apprenticeship programs, business development programs, and more to foster a diverse economy that supports good-paying jobs - health care, high-tech, agricultural production and processing, infrastructure, redevelopment, and more. Preparing our workforce - especially in Montana - for the economies of the future will be a key focus of my tenure in Congress to build inclusive prosperity in the long run. stop

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