Montanans should be very concerned that U.S. Senator Jon Tester voted against the tools needed for the war on terror. This week, Tester voted against reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. This bill provided intelligence professionals with the tools they need to keep America safe from terrorists. Fortunately, 68 other senators disagreed with Tester and voted for the bill. It passed the senate, but the House Democratic leadership failed to pass it, opting instead to go on a week of vacation and leave the United States vulnerable with fewer tools to fight terrorism. The bill is set to expire on Saturday.

Congressman Denny Rehberg correctly said, “…it’s obvious House Democrat Leaders aren’t serious about our safety.”

Thanks goes to U.S. Senator Max Baucus for voting for the bill – and voting to protect us.

But, back to Sen. Tester. With this vote, he has amplified his position as the most liberal member of the Montana Congressional delegation, putting him squarely with the likes of Kennedy, Kerry, Schumer, Leahy, and Feinstein. That should be good for his fundraising on the East and West coasts, but costly in Montana where people care about the security of our nation. At least Tester did vote, although incorrectly. Senators Clinton and Obama decided to stay away from taking a stand on protecting the United States, by not voting. Instead they decided protecting their presidential aspirations were more important.

The good news for Tester is that he will be able to use some MSNBC talking points from Keith Olbermann to reconcile the way he voted.

As for the safety and security of the United States, time will tell how this lag in our security will affect us down the road. That is a problem with which the Democratic leadership of the U.S. House will have to live.