The office of Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.) on Monday threatened to sue former Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) for defamation after claiming that Rosendale ended his Senate bid because he got a member of his staff pregnant.
“Just to gossip a little bit, there’s a reason why Rosendale backed out of that Senate race,” Heitkamp said during an interview on the “Talking Feds with Harry Litman” podcast released on Monday. “The rumor is that he impregnated a 20-year-old staff person.”
Rosendale’s office promptly threatened legal action against the former senator.
“This is 100% false and defamatory and former Senator Heitkamp will be hearing from our lawyers soon,” Ron Kovach, a spokesperson for Rosendale, said in an email statement.
Heitkamp also suggested during the podcast interview that Rosendale might soon step down from his House seat.
“I think [the Republican] caucus might lose a member in the next couple days,” she said. “Might be the congressman from Montana.”
Rosendale ended his campaign for the Senate on Feb. 15, just six days after he launched it, citing former President Donald Trump’s decision to endorse GOP hopeful Tim Sheehy in the race.
“By my calculations, with Trump endorsing my opponent and the lack of resources, the hill was just too steep,” Rosendale said in a statement at the time, adding that he would be taking time with his family to consider next steps.
The Daily Montanan reported that Rosendale filed paperwork over the weekend to run for reelection in his House seat.
