Trump-backed US Senate candidate faces scrutiny for derogatory comments about Native Americans

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Tribal leaders in Montana urged Republican U.S. Senate candidate Tim Sheehy to apologize over remarks he made to supporters about Native Americans being “drunk at 8 a.m.” and throwing beer cans at him on the Crow Reservation

Audio recordings of Sheehy’s racial comments were obtained and published by Char-Koosta News, the official publication of the Flathead Indian Reservation.

Sheehy, who is backed by former President Donald Trump, is challenging three-term incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in one of the most closely-watched congressional races in the nation. A Republican victory could help decide control of the closely divided Senate.

A Sheehy campaign spokesperson did not dispute the authenticity of the recordings, which the tribal newspaper said came from fundraising events held in Montana last November.

Sheehy is heard commenting in one of the recordings that his ranching partner is a member of the Crow Tribe with whom Sheehy ropes and brands cattle on the tribe’s southeastern Montana reservation.

“Great way to bond with all the Indians, to be out there while they’re drunk at 8 a.m.,” Sheehy says.

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