As I was reading the news this morning, I saw the headline “Tester confident his record will stand during big re-election challenge from Rehberg.”

In case you missed the news, first-term U.S. Senator Jon Tester (Democrat) filed for re-election on Tuesday in Helena, Montana.  You can read the story HERE.

Personally, Tester saying he is “confident” about his record seems like a stretch, but each person will have to make up their own mind.  For me, when a candidate (in this case a U.S. Senator) files for re-election, it begs the question, “Are you better off now than you were six years ago?”

So I quickly jotted down nine or ten things to help me answer that question (and to help me with this column) without even thinking too much about it.  Enjoy… Continue reading →