Feisty congressman delivers for his district.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Seniority counts for something in Congress. A representative's ability to influence legislation is largely determined by seniority.

With 18 years under his belt representing Oregon's 4th District, Democrat Peter DeFazio has accumulated more seniority than all but 68 members of the 435-member House of Representatives. DeFazio's aggressive advocacy has paid dividends every year for his constituents. Voters in the district should protect their investment in congressional clout by re-electing DeFazio.

Republican challenger Jim Feldkamp is a Roseburg native with a made-to-order post-Sept. 11 resume that includes flying combat missions in the 1991 Persian Gulf War and four years of counterterrorism duty as an FBI agent. If that impressive background in national security were accompanied by even a small amount of relevant political experience, Feldkamp would be a more formidable opponent.

Two minor-party candidates in the race are Libertarian Jacob Boone, 31, a computer student at Oregon State University; and Constitution Party candidate Michael Paul Marsh, 56, a maintenance worker from Salem.

Feldkamp, 41, is forced by his inexperience to rely mainly on the Republican leadership in Congress and the Bush administration for a platform. It's a familiar list that translates to support for tax cuts that disproportionately favor the rich and drive up the deficit, privatization of Social Security, unswerving support of the administration's rush to war in Iraq, industry-friendly weakening of the Endangered Species Act and prohibiting the federal government from negotiating the best price for medicine in Medicare's prescription drug program.

The Republican-run House has no shortage of supporters for those positions. What Oregon's 4th District residents would lose in the swap of Feldkamp for DeFazio would be DeFazio's tenure on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Select Committee on Homeland Security.

DeFazio has secured $65 million for highway and transit projects in Southwest Oregon this year and $394 million a year in statewide funding for highways. Without DeFazio's dogged support, Oregon's harbors and rivers could lose federal funding for dredging projects that are vital to the region's economic and recreational needs. As the ranking Democrat on the aviation subcommittee, DeFazio has pushed for increased aviation security and authored an amendment allowing commercial airline pilots to carry firearms.

The 57-year-old Springfield resident is a fiscal conservative who supports a balanced budget amendment and who refuses to accept congressionally approved pay raises. He returns some of each pay increase to the treasury and directs the rest to a scholarship fund that has issued more than 132 scholarships to district residents.

In addition to his legislative achievements, there isn't room here to cite all the important stands he has taken opposing legislation that wasn't in the best interests of Oregonians. As he has matured in his congressional role, DeFazio has emerged as an important independent watchdog for the interests of workers, seniors, consumers, small businesses and rural communities.

Voters should keep the watchdog barking and re-elect DeFazio.