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Bullock has experience in the Attorney General's office

Pub Date: 5/1/2008
By Steve Bullock
Democratic Candidate for
Montana Attorney General

I appreciate the opportunity to contribute a few words to the Montana Tavern Times.  

Montana is truly a unique place...Its people and the quality of life we share set us apart from other places.

I am running for Attorney General to protect and preserve this place we call home.

The general public is largely unaware of the role the Attorney General plays in promoting and preserving our quality of life.

The Attorney General leads a 750-employee agency with a $70 million annual budget.  The job requires more than just advocating on behalf of the Department of Justice and law enforcement in front of the Legislature, although I have experience doing so.  And it is more than just representing the state in civil litigation or crafting the state s defense in criminal appeals, although I have done both.  

And the job of Attorney General is more than serving as the non-uniformed boss of the Highway Patrol, although I have worked with the Patrol quite a bit.

I am the only candidate that has worked in the Attorney General s office.  In addition to almost a decade of private practice representing large and small businesses, associations and individuals, I served four years in the office I am asking the voters to allow me to lead, first as the Executive Assistant Attorney General, then finishing up as Acting Chief Deputy.  I worked on behalf of the department in our courts and in our legislative halls, undertaking both civil and criminal work.

While it may be lost on the average citizen, the hospitality industry knows all too well the importance of this position, and how it can impact your life and business. Oversight of the Gambling Control Division is a significant responsibility: on the one hand the department serves as the investigatory and regulatory body, yet on the other the division is tasked with doing what it can to make the interface between business and government as reasonable as possible.

I look forward to serving both functions, and working with the industry in doing so.

Experience means more than just time practicing law in fields irrelevant to the day-to-day job of Attorney General.  Because of term limits we do not have four years for the next Attorney General to acquire the on-the-job training he needs.  

The Attorney General wears many hats, including needing to be a seasoned lawyer experienced in many different facets of the law and a seasoned manager. I am running because I believe I have the experience, background, education and vision to effectively serve the public wearing all of the hats.

Source: The Montana Tavern Times, May, 2008, published monthly by Continental Communications, 125 W. Granite St., Suite 102, Butte, MT 59701.