Reporter's Notebook: Big Gun Country

April 7, 2008 — -- "Have you ever held a gun before?"

That's what the governor of Montana asked me last week when I visited his home in Helena, Mt.

Before I could finish my quip about having once gone skeet-shooting off the back of a cruise ship, the governor had retrieved a (loaded) 30.06 Savage rifle with a scope as well as a Smith & Wesson .38 stainless handgun with a laser site (or, as he liked to call it, his "little James Bond gun").

While arming a reporter in your living room may seem like odd behavior, it was not entirely surprising coming from Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer.

Described by the founder of the liberal Daily Kos blog as "a genuine version of Bush's fake ranch," Schweitzer is the state's first Democratic governor in 16 years.

On the same November day in 2004 that Montana backedPresident Bush by 20 points, Schweitzer scored a four-point win of his own.

He owes the win in large part to his "regular guy" image and conservative stance on guns.

Now, with only three years in office under his belt, Schweitzer, who is neutral in the current presidential race, is sometimes mentioned by pundits as a possible running mate for Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. Like the Democratic presidential front-runner, Schweitzer came out early against the Iraq War and has sworn off PAC money.

Despite a political profile that could help underscore the Democrats' determination to win in traditionally Republican areas, it is easier to imagine the blunt-speaking Schweitzer making his own presidential run in 2012 than it is to see him playing second fiddle this year.

While Schweitzer has not proposed his own universal health care plan in Montana, he believes Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., is right to have endorsed a mandate on the national level.

By not requiring individuals to purchase insurance, Schweitzer believes Obama's plan to forbid insurance companies to deny coverage because of pre-existing conditions will lead to healthy people opting out and sick people opting in.