Matt Rosendale drops reelection bid citing death threat and ‘defamatory rumors’, Internet says 'he needs to retire'

HELENA, MONTANA: On Friday, March 8, Rep Matt Rosendale (R-Mont) declared that he would not be running for reelection in the House after facing a “death threat” and “false and defamatory rumors” due to allegations of having impregnated a young staff member.

The 63-year-old was one of the eight House Republicans who voted with Democrats to remove former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif) last October. He now claims that he is being faced with "severe retribution" due to his willingness “to try and force true reforms" in Congress.

The Montana Republican pointed to his brief run for the United States Senate as the beginning of his recent troubles, according to the New York Post.

Following his primary opponent securing the coveted endorsement by former President Donald Trump, Rep Rosendale called off his Senate campaign last month.

Why is Matt Rosendale dropping reelection bid?

Rosendale posted his statement on X, “Upon withdrawing from that race, and again at the urging of many, including several of the current candidates, I filed to run for reelection to my current seat.”

He continued, “Since that announcement, I have been forced to have law enforcement visit my children because of a death threat against me and false and defamatory rumors against me and my family.”

“This has taken a serious toll on me, and my family,” he mentioned.

Last month, former Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) disclosed on a podcast that she had learned of a "little rumor" that the Montana Republican had impregnated a young staff member and could have to recuse himself.

In an episode of the podcast ‘Talking Feds with Harry Litman', Heitkamp stated, "Just a little rumor - I think [the GOP] caucus may lose a member in the next couple days."

“Might be the congressman from Montana,” she added.

In addition, the 68-year-old Democrat, who was defeated by Republican Kevin Cramer in her 2018 reelection race, implied that Rosendale's decision to halt his Senate campaign a few days after it was announced was due to the "rumor."

“Just to gossip a little bit: There’s a reason why Rosendale backed out of that Senate race — the rumor is he impregnated a 20-year-old staff person,” Heitkamp shared during the episode.

Rosendale's representative informed the aforementioned outlet at the time that the claim was "100% false and defamatory" and that Heitkamp would be "hearing from our lawyers soon."

The congressman stated in his parting remarks that the rumors and death threat "caused a serious disruption to the election of the next representative" for Montana's 2nd Congressional District.

“To me, public service has truly always been about serving, not titles or positions of power. The current attacks have made it impossible for me to focus on my work to serve you,” Rosendale asserted. 

“So, in the best interest of my family and the community, I am withdrawing from the House race and will not be seeking office,” he added. “It has been my honor to serve you and may God bless each and every one of you.”

Internet unimpressed as Matt Rosendale steps down

People on X had no sympathies for the Montana Republican for not seeking a third term at the House of Representatives.

One X user remarked, "Quitting over “false” rumors only verifies them…"

Another said, "Rumour is he's the baby daddy of his 20 yr old staffer."

Someone else claimed, "Gosh I didn’t think republicans got death threats. Must have been from another Republican. Yeah, that’s squares. Democrats would never ever threaten someone’s life for having a differing ideology then them."

One user wrote, "He need to retire."

Another remarked, "Wow, everything he accused other for and put targets on them at the same time! Karma."

Someone else tweeted, "That's Sad To Hear."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.