Welcome to August!  Wow, where did July go?  For the past several Mondays, we have taken a look at some of the political stories from the past weekend and offered some commentary.

This weekend was full of…suspense as we waited for a debt deal to be done.  A deal was reached between the leaders of the House, Senate and with the President and we’re watching for it to make its way through the legislative process.  More on this below.

Today we take a look at metered reading, more Spenditol, Montana’s delegation and debt, and the debt ceiling deal. 

The Meter is Running:

While this is not exactly a political story, since we get a lot of political news from newspapers, it is worth a mention.

As you know several newspapers across the country are having financial problems.  Some newspapers across Montana owned by Lee Enterprises (Helena Independent Record, Missoulian, Billings Gazette, Ravalli Republic and The Montana Standard) “will begin a metered fee system for those reading our content online.”  According to this article, “The meter works this way: As you approach your free, 15-page limit, a warning will pop up online notifying you that your [sic] are close to the limit. Once you hit 15 pages, the screen will give you a message asking you to pay for more content. The meter resets after one month.”

Note:  By clicking on that link to read the article, the meter is running.

All I can say is good grief…

More Spenditol:

The fundraising e-mail sent by Senator Tester’s campaign saying a group called Concerned Women for America, “lobbied Congress against child pornography protection” is still getting some media attention, but the Montana media has mostly ignored it.  It all started with this political advertisement.

Here’s the latest from a Washington Post blog (how can I get this blog on the Washington Post or other newspapers and get paid for it?).

The Tester fundraising letter is getting lots more attention since this little skirmish broke out – so I imagine they welcome the attention. Maybe if this dies down, the Tester campaign should apologize and get a few more days of media attention – maybe in Montana, too.

The Debt and Montana’s Delegation:

Lee Newspaper reporter Mike Dennison takes a look at “what the members of our own congressional delegation — Rep. Denny Rehberg and Sens. Jon Tester and Max Baucus — have been doing and saying to help get us out of this mess.”

The story was a little over 1000 words.  It could have been much shorter because the Montana delegation has been on the sidelines waiting for their leaders to make a move.  You can read it HERE.

The Debt Ceiling Deal:

I don’t like it.  If I had a vote, it would be NO.  It sounds like a typical Washington deal to me.  I imagine my elected officials will vote for it.  One thing to keep in mind is that our country is $14 trillion in debt.

After reading about the plan from several sources, my thoughts were, “Is that all you’ve got?”  It was like waiting to see a movie that was highly advertised and then being disappointed after seeing it.

If you read about it this morning, there are several different conclusions as to what the agreement actually means – so hopefully everyone WILL READ the bill before voting.

-Here’s one thing that is silly – according to this article “A 12-member congressional committee, made up equally of Republicans and Democrats from each chamber, would be tasked with finding a further $1.5 trillion in budget savings.”

Doesn’t the House and the Senate already have a committee to handle the budget; I think they even call it a “Budget Committee” or something close to that.  It’s just another layer of bureaucracy and it “kicks the can down the road.”

-They only cut about $2.4 trillion in spending over 10 years.

Remember – we are $14 trillion in debt today. 

-We needed a Balanced Budget Amendment to be included with this deal, but it was put off toward the end of the year and probably won’t pass because it needs a two-thirds vote from each chamber.

The people who claim to be conservatives and wanted this amendment got hosed…Remember – we are $14 trillion in debt today. 

-Hopefully after this little skirmish is over, the U.S. Senate will prepare a budget – a first for them in over 800 days.  The lack of a budget in the U.S. Senate is something that should shame Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester.

Those running for election in 2012 have been given a gift.  If this deal passes, it won’t need to be brought back up again until after the election.

Finally, I think it is safe to say that we are all losers in this mess.

Follow Jack on Twitter @TheWesternWord for updates throughout the day (and night).