Sali and McMorris Rodgers will be on record voting against timber towns in their districts and for multinational oil companies - in an election year. That could be especially troublesome for Sali. He faces a strong challenge from Democrat Walt Minnick, yet he is not enough of a player in the House to be able to steer this dispute toward an acceptable compromise. He'd better hope that other Republicans will, because if the royalties-versus-drilling standoff ends up depriving Sali's district of money it needs, he will have a hard time explaining why toeing the party line is more important than helping struggling constituents/Jim Fisher, Lewiston Tribune. More here.

IMHO roundup:
*Craig-Wyden funds are critical for rural counties/SR
*The nightmare team/David Horsey, Seattle PI
*When candidates get burned by religion/Joel Connelly, Seattle PI
*State board, universities need a working relationship/IStatesman

Question: Do you understand the timber-oil vote Thursday that left Idaho rural counties in a lurch?

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