When three Idaho state representatives joined lawmakers from Washington and Oregon over the weekend to visit the armed protesters occupying a federal wildlife refuge near Burns, Ore., they also met with law enforcement officials, said Rep. Heather Scott, R-Blanchard, who was among the group. “We also met with government officials and the FBI, so it was not just the protesters,” Scott said as she left the House floor this morning. “It was a fact-finding mission.”

Scott said it was well worth the trip. The Oregonian reported Sunday that Scott, Idaho Reps. Sage Dixon, R-Ponderay, and Judy Boyle, R-Midvale, joined Washington Rep. Matt Shea, R-Spokane Valley, and Graham Hunt, R-Orting, and Oregon Rep. Dallas Heard, R-Roseburg, in visiting the protesters, though Oregon Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, whose district includes the area, opposed the visit. Bentz told the Oregonian that Heard contacted him about it. “He had called me and indicated he was heading that direction, and I indicated that was inappropriate,” Bentz said. “I think it's fair to say I was not enthusiastic about the idea.”

Through a spokesman, Shea told The Spokesman-Review that he went at his own expense, at the invitation of Oregon lawmakers. The Oregonian reported that Nevada Assemblywoman Michelle Fiore, R-Clark County, joined the group by telephone.