(C) Daily Montanan This story was originally published by Daily Montanan and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Zinke attacks Libertarian on veterans, but Lamb said he doesn't recognize quote attributed to him – Daily Montanan [1] ['Keila Szpaller', 'More From Author', '- September'] Date: 2022-09-14 Libertarian John Lamb published a screenshot from a ZinkeforMontana post this week that attributes a quote insulting veterans to Lamb — a quote Lamb said he never uttered. However, Lamb, a Norris farmer, took pride of sorts in the attack, which he said followed a request last month by Republican Ryan Zinke that Lamb bow out of the U.S. House of Representatives race and endorse the GOP candidate. On his own Facebook page, Lamb posted another quote with the screenshot: “The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about.” The screenshot of ZinkeforMontana’s Instagram said this, in part: “John Lamb has repeatedly posted on Facebook that American service members commit murder, don’t fight for freedom and that veterans are ‘the sacred cow that must be turned into hamburger.’” Tuesday, Lamb said he didn’t know the source of the “sacred cow” quote: “I’ve never heard of that quote before reading Ryan’s post.” The Zinke campaign did not respond to an email Tuesday requesting the source of the quote. Wednesday, the campaign did not respond to questions via Instagram and a text message, and a phone number for the campaign repeatedly went to a full voicemail box. Lamb is the third party candidate in the U.S. House of Representatives for Montana’s new western district. Zinke, former U.S. Secretary of the Interior, is the favorite to win against Lamb and underdog Democrat Monica Tranel in a race that again has candidates vying for the veteran vote. Montana has a high population of veterans, and political scientist Jeremy Johnson said the GOP typically wants to consolidate the veteran vote. But Libertarian candidates can peel votes away from Republicans. “While we often think of veterans as, generally speaking, supporting Republicans, it’s not always the case,” said Johnson, with Carroll College in Helena. “Some are swing voters.” He also said Democrats generally have to do better with veterans in order to win in Montana. Last month, Tranel launched Veterans on the Trail for Tranel to highlight her platform for veterans. In a phone interview, Lamb said he has been critical of veterans who have killed illegally while on duty. He said he opposed former President Donald Trump’s pardon of Eddie Gallagher, a U.S. Navy SEAL who had been charged with murder and found not guilty of serious crimes, a controversial decision that angered military chiefs. However, in response to a request Wednesday that he alert the Daily Montanan if he recalled the “sacred cow” statement, Lamb again said it did not come from him: “I definitely have never heard of this quote. I am curious about where it came from.” The Zinke campaign did not respond to multiple requests Tuesday and Wednesday for the source of the quote. The campaign also did not respond to a question about why Zinke, a proud Navy SEAL, would seek the endorsement of a candidate he alleged had repeatedly insulted veterans. Last month, all three candidates appeared at a forum in Missoula, and Lamb said Zinke personally asked him at the event — twice — to step down from the race. Lamb also said Zinke, who previously served in the U.S. House, wanted Lamb’s endorsement, which Lamb said he found “comical.” Johnson said a request that a candidate step down can be seen as a bullying attempt. At the Missoula event, Lamb said Zinke told him the Libertarian could give the race to Tranel, but over the phone, Lamb said he isn’t worried that a Democrat will win. He said he would love to win and represent Montana as a congressman, but he has an uphill battle as a Libertarian without the big money his opponents have. And he said the decision is up to voters. “I think she would do a great job if she was elected,” Lamb said of Tranel. “So I’m not worried if she wins.” However, Lamb admitted he didn’t have the same peace of mind about a possible — analysts say very probable — win by Zinke. “I believe that he has a record of some things that he needs to address before he goes back into public office,” Lamb said. In recent years, the Inspector General’s Office of the U.S. Department of the Interior has investigated Zinke for numerous allegations of unethical dealings. Most recently, the IG’s Office found last month that Zinke didn’t tell the truth about his interactions with corporate casino representatives regarding his decision as Secretary in a tribal casino deal. Zinke, who served as U.S. Secretary of the Interior from March 2017 to January 2019, has maintained the investigations were politically motivated. The most recent investigation report was released under DOI Inspector General Mark Greenblatt, appointed by Republican Trump in January 2019 and confirmed the following August. A February 2022 report that found Zinke was not honest about a Whitefish development also was released under Greenblatt. Three earlier reports from 2018 and 2019 were published under leadership that was led by a senior member of the civil service, but not appointed by Trump. 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