We’re just 78 days out from Election Day 2012, and already some candidates can’t seem to handle the spotlight…

Welcome!  “Monday Morning Politics” is where I take a quick look at several political stories from the past weekend.  Plus, I also offer some commentary about these stories – sometimes laced with just a little sarcasm…

Today I talk about the Missouri Senate race, being bona fide, skinny dipping, drunk driving, McCain in Great Falls, Veterans, unemployment, Montana Governor’s race, being better off, milking cows and camping, and much much more!

Bona Fides:

Over the weekend, the Associated Press (AP) published a story where they took a look at the Denny Rehberg versus Jon Tester senate race.  They story had the headline, “Bickering over bona fides in Montana Senate race.”

That headline reminds me of the line in the movie, “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” when Penny (played by Holly Hunter) says to Everett (played by George Clooney) “Vernon here’s got a job.  Vernon’s got prospects.  He’s bona fide.  What are you?”

Sadly, the AP failed to give us much new information about the race in their story.

McCain Wrap-up:

The Associated Press reported on Senator John McCain’s visit to Great Falls (Montana) on Friday saying, “U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg brought U.S. Sen. John McCain to a key military town in the state Friday as he woos the veterans that are a perceived strength for his opponent, U.S. Sen. Jon Tester.”

John McCain was quoted in the Great Falls Tribune newspaper saying, “it is ‘not acceptable’ that the unemployment rate among veterans is 14 percent, nearly twice the overall 8.3 percent level.”

Since both Tester and Rehberg are attempting to court the veterans’ vote, there are several ways to determine which candidate actually cares more for veterans.  One way is to see which candidate employs (full-time) the greater number of veterans on their respective House and Senate staff.  Rehberg and Tester Communications/Press people can send the information to me at Western_Word@yahoo.com. 

Maybe their campaigns will provide me with the veterans’ information for their staff?  I will be waiting…

Drunks:

Lee Newspapers is reporting that in Montana “fatal crashes in which alcohol was a factor are up considerably over last year – 36 such deaths from Jan. 1 through Aug. 13, as compared to 23 in the same period last year, according to Montana Highway Patrol statistics.”

We need the 2013 Montana Legislature to impose harsher penalties on drunken driving.  Maybe it’s just me, but that seems more important than debating Obama’s birth certificate or enacting a cowboy code…

MT Governor’s Race – Outside Money on the Way:

Lee Newspapers published a story about the relatively quiet Montana Governor’s race saying, “Outside groups haven’t spent much money so far in the Montana governor’s race compared to the U.S. Senate campaign, but both the Democratic and Republican Governors associations expect to ramp up their efforts considerably in the coming weeks.”

I can’t wait, can you?

Montana Unemployment:

Montana’s unemployment rate rose from 6.3% to 6.4%.  Read about it HERE.

Things are still tough in the job market.

U.S. Senate –Missouri:

A few weeks ago I said that I thought Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill of Missouri would pull out a win this November.  After the recent remarks from her opponent, Republican Todd Akin, I feel better about that prediction.

According to the Kansas City Star:

U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin of Missouri ignited a firestorm of criticism Sunday when he said in a television interview that rape victims have a biological ability to ward off pregnancy.

“If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down,” the Republican said in the interview.

That was after Thursday’s remarks when he said, he “didn’t think the federal government should fund school lunches.”

The Romney/Ryan campaign distanced themselves from Akin’s remarks about rape.

I have many faithful readers from Missouri – please don’t vote for this moron…

Skinny Dipping in Israel:

According to the Washington Post, “House Republican leaders reprimanded 30 lawmakers last August for antics including drinking and skinny dipping during a fact-finding trip to Israel.”

The members have too much time on their hands – maybe if they worked more than four months out of the year they would not have time for junkets…

Better Off:

According to a new poll from Gallup, “A majority of voters in key 2012 election swing states say they are not better off than they were four years ago; 40% say they are better.”  But, Gallup also reports that they are “divided as to whether they would be better off in four years under Obama or Romney.”

If people actually liked Romney he would be running away with this race…

Camping and Milking Cows:

On Sunday the Associated Press reported, “Mitt Romney wants running mate Paul Ryan to play it safe” and talk about “camping and milking cows instead of the fiscal proposals that made him a conservative hero.”

Is this a winning strategy?  I’d rather Paul Ryan put me to sleep with his budget ideas…

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