Burner Cites Controversy Over Attorneys in E-mail
Darcy Burner (D), who came within 2 points of toppling Rep. Dave Reichert (R) in November, is wasting no time in getting her rematch off the ground.
Burner, who announced earlier this month that she would try again in 2008, weighed in on the controversy surrounding the firing of eight U.S. attorneys across the country.
“I am deeply troubled by the removal of U.S. Attorneys, including John McKay for what appear to be partisan political reasons,” she wrote in an e-mail last week to supporters.
Burner called for an independent investigation into the matter that has Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in a fix with Democrats and some Republicans on Capitol Hill.
McKay was the Republican U.S. attorney in Seattle and was among those fired. Critics of his firing believe it had to do with his rulings in the contested 2004 gubernatorial election.
Reichert’s suburban Seattle 8th district is a true swing district. Republican leaders know that the former King County sheriff is unlikely to ever get a pass and have added him to their fundraising program aimed at helping vulnerable incumbents, Retain Our Majority Program.
Despite Burner’s close call in November, she may have to fight for the Democratic nomination as state Rep. Ross Hunter, who Democratic leaders tried to recruit in the previous cycle, is weighing a bid.
— Nicole Duran