Watch: Jon Tester Slams Steve Bullock for Not Running for Senate

Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) slammed Montana Democrat Gov. Steve Bullock on Wednesday for running for president instead of the U.S. Senate and declined to endorse him.

On MSNBC’s Morning Joe on Wednesday, Tester was asked about Bullock’s decision not to run for the Senate and whether he would endorse Bullock for president.

Tester declined to endorse Bullock for president and instead swiped at his fellow Montana Democrat for not running for the U.S. Senate against Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) in 2020.

“Well I will tell you that we need good people to run, and we will have a good person to run in Montana, somebody that has a fire in their belly and willing to do the sacrifice needed to do to win a Senate seat,” Tester said.

Tester described Bullock as a “good friend,” but did not express any interest in backing Bullock’s presidential campaign.

Tester continued:

Look, Steve Bullock is a very good friend … He’s been a long time friend – and a good one. I’ve got a lot of good friends in this race cause there’s so many people running for president. And I would just tell you that I want to let things move out. We’re 18 months before the election and like I said I’ve got to work with all these folks so hopefully, we’ll get some policy done over the next six to eight months, next year and a half, and help move the country forward.

During his presidential announcement on Tuesday, Bullock struggled to name his proudest achievement as governor.

Bullock said:

Um, I am happy that, hopefully my kids still know my most important job is being their dad. I think the things where, as governor, it’s not like attorney general, you know you won or lost a case, sometimes you won’t have impacts for years. I know that 100,000 have health care because of the work that we have done.