Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) has a lot on his mind these days.
The freshman lawmaker is a prime target for Republicans in 2012.
{mosads}Montana is a red state, though Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) only won it over President Obama by three percentage points in 2008.
Democrats will use Republican plans to reform Medicare as political ammunition next year. Yet Tester will have a harder time doing that because Rep. Denny Rehberg (Mont.), who is running for Tester’s seat, was one of only four Republicans to oppose Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) budget plan that calls for major changes to Medicare.
Tea Party officials weren’t happy with Rehberg’s vote, but the House GOP legislator is more worried about the general election than the primary.
Meanwhile, Tester, who narrowly defeated Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.) in 2006, has another battle in his immediate future.
The Senate will soon vote on his bill to delay the implementation of a provision in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law.
The law calls for restrictions on swipe fees, which are the charges banks collect from retailers when they use a credit card.
Banks back Tester’s bill, while retailers oppose it.
It remains unclear if he has 60 votes to pass his measure, though Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), who has championed the crackdown on swipe fees, are firm nos.
GOP leaders in the Senate, who hope to take control of the chamber in January 2013, have a campaign-related reason to vote against Tester’s bill. Should his measure pass, Tester will surely attract headlines back home for the legislative win.
It appears that Tester will come up short. He initially wanted to delay the regulations for two years, but has since pulled that back to 15 months. That move is a clear sign he needs more votes.