Bet you thought this would be another snarky post about wrinkly old Max and his staffer/girlfriend and his recommendation of her to be Montana’s US Attorney. Not so, my friends. If you really want the inside gossip on how this little affaire du coeur is playing out in other venues, you need to check out the venom spewing from the Daily Kos. Hell hath no fury and all that, but did you realize the libs were THAT ticked off by the good Senator? Whoa! The stuff the conservatives are lobbing out there is mere marshmallows compared to the ammo the left-wing nuts are firing off.

Still, I digress.

In these times of slumping revenues and ever-increasing belt-tightening measures, why, pray tell, is Governor Schweitzer flying around the country in first class?

“We will continue to be accountable for every dollar,” Schweitzer said in a release. “This is not the first austerity measure that I have implemented and there will be more.”

The governor previously directed agencies to cut out-of-state travel by 35 percent.

He was recently observed by a state employee, returning from parts unknown, comfortably ensconced in the front of the plane enjoying all the accoutrements thereof.

Certainly, the trip could have been paid for by some special interest group seeking his wisdom and goodwill. Or perhaps he had been delivering one of his rip-roaring speeches ala the Trial Lawyers Association appearance of 2008. Or, hey, he could have been flying on his own dime. Good reasons all; but perhaps he should be just a touch more sensitive to the concerns of the taxpayers and other state employees when traveling the friendly skies.

It’s so hard to convince folks that you’re just really doing the best you can and you have their best interests and pocket books in mind when you keep setting yourself apart in the high-priced section.

Then again, maybe the good gov is practicing for when Max resigns and he appoints himself to be the next senator and doesn’t have to care about what his constituents think.