One would think the Associated Press (AP) would be concentrating on the 2010 Elections. Maybe a story about the U.S. House race or the Public Service Commission races or maybe which political party will be in control of the Montana House or Senate.

Nope.

AP reporter Matt Gouras decided to write a story about U.S. Senator Jon Tester being a farmer. The title of the story is: “Farmer Jon: US Sen. spends weekends plowing fields.”

Tester is not running for reelection until 2012. The New York Times recently did an editorial about Tester the Farmer, and this story is more of the same.

To say the least, this story is as old as Tester’s tractor.

Gouras should have done some research. Tester promised voters that his daughter and her family would move back to the farm and “take it over” while he served as U.S. Senator. Now, the farm is a campaign tool; a tool that most of the gullible media are happy to write about.

Gouras also writes about the “grubby clothes” worn by Tester on the farm. A couple of years ago I happened to be on a plane leaving Montana for business. Tester was also a passenger. Let me just say that the “grubby clothes” are not just worn on the farm.

While we’re joyful that Tester’s wife can take a wheel off a tractor, frankly, people expect a U.S. Senator to do more than plow his fields on the weekends and during Senate recess. They expect him to earn his $174,000 yearly salary getting out and about meeting people, hearing their concerns, and to not hide on a tractor (especially like he did during the healthcare debate).

With our country in more debt since Tester has been in the Senate, unemployment at record highs, and with several broken campaign promises, most Montanans probably think it’s time for the Senator to get off the tractor and head into town to do the job in which he was elected.