Welcome to Tuesday here at The Western Word and to those readers who don’t have jobs, welcome to your weekend!

There are many things happening in the world of politics and I’ve got them covered – Today I take a look at the first bids in the governor’s race, UM and Veterans, fundraising at The Monocle, questioning your donors, approval ratings, our country is hurting, Newt to visit Montana, and much more!

First Bids Are In:

The bidding war for votes started in the Montana Governor’s race yesterday with Democratic Governor candidate Steve Bullock announcing that he would “give homeowners a one-time, $400 property tax rebate if he is elected governor.”

Republican Rick Hill countered that with a statement that was sent to some in the media saying, “Montanans and our job creators need permanent property tax relief, not a one-time gimmick that won’t do anything to stimulate the economy.”  KRTV reported, “Hill says that by using the state share of the oil and gas revenues along with the lease and royalty income from Otter Creek coal development, the state can provide approximately $200 million of tax relief per biennium on a permanent basis.”

And the winner is…Bullock.  Bullock won this little battle because he explained his plan on a level that almost everyone can understand – a $400 check for homeowners if he is elected…

University of Montana & Veterans – Follow-up:

Yesterday morning I mentioned the problem 19 veterans were having with the University of Montana (UM) covering their tuition through the Yellow Ribbon program.  I said the way they were being treated by UM was “shameful.”

Yesterday afternoon Congressman Denny Rehberg jumped on the issue and contacted the secretaries of Veterans Affairs and Education.

Today we find, through a story in the Missoulian, that “UM on Monday announced it would find a way to pay for the 19 student veterans to continue their education throughout the next academic year without interruptions or financial hardships.”

The University of Montana needs a good public relations team…

Tester’s Shindigs:

In a story from the Salt Lake City Tribune about Utah Senator Orrin Hatch’s fundraising spot in Washington, D.C., we also find that Montana Senator Jon Tester is a regular at The Monocle which is a restaurant near the U.S. Senate.  Tester reportedly has held 11 fundraisers at The Monocle since the beginning of 2011.

Montana’s other Senator, Max Baucus, enjoyed using Signatures restaurant (owned by Jack Abramoff) for his fundraisers.  Signatures is now closed…

Questioning Top Donors:

According to a story I found in The Daily Agenda, “Of the 22 members on the Congressional hearing charged this week with questioning JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon over his bank’s $2 billion trading loss, 7 members, including the Chairman and a ranking member, have JPMorgan as one of their top five political contributors.”

Senator Jon Tester is a member of that committee and he received $45,000 from JPMorgan.  From the “Securities and Investment” industry he received over $360,000 according to the report.

Of course all those senators listed as receiving donations will say that the donations do not carry any weight with them and those running against them will say they are bought and paid for – it really does not matter to which political party they belong…

Approval Ratings:

A new poll from Gallup that was released yesterday told us, “Americans’ approval of Congress is at 17% in June, similar to the 15% in May, and continuing the generally low levels seen since last June.”

We just keep sending them back…

We’re Hurting:

According to a study from the Federal Reserve, “The financial crisis wiped out 18 years of gains for the median U.S. household net worth, with a 38.8 percent plunge from 2007 to 2010 that was led by the collapse in home prices.”

In other words, “Median net worth declined to $77,300 in 2010, the lowest since 1992, from $126,400 in 2007.”  That’s almost $50,000…

Of course since we have millionaires representing us and running the country, they don’t really feel the pain…

Here Comes Gingrich:

As first Tweeted by The Western Word (@TheWesternWord) former Speaker of the House (and Presidential candidate) Newt Gingrich will be in Missoula on Saturday morning to speak during the Montana GOP Convention.

The details can be found HERE.

You should really be following Jack on Twitter @TheWesternWord – you will probably smile at least one more time per day if you do…