Kirk Johnson of the New York Times traveled to Lincoln to take the temperature of the Montana Senate race between incumbent Democrat Jon Tester and his challenger, Republican Rep. Denny Rehberg. Once again, the high-profile race was touted as key in deciding which party will control the Senate. It did point out, as has been previously reported, that it appears Rehberg is taking steps toward the middle as the campaign ramps up:
Mr. Rehberg, a rancher and real-estate developer, has also bucked the more conservative corners of his party in recent months. He was one of only four Republicans in the House to vote against the budget plan put forward by Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin in April. Mr. Rehberg said he had too many questions about the plan’s potential impact on Medicare.
He also refused in an interview to say definitively that he would never under any circumstances vote to increase federal taxes, by closing loopholes, for example.
“To get us out of this financial crisis as we have it today, I do not believe that we need a tax increase,” he said. “Tax increases should not be the first resort.”