OLYMPIA -- Democratic U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee and Republican Larry Ishmael are competing for the 1st Congressional District seat, again.
In 2006, they faced each other and Inslee defeated Ishmael.
At stake is a two-year term in the U.S. House of Representatives serving residents in parts of Snohomish, King and Kitsap counties. Lynnwood, Edmonds, Mill Creek, Mukilteo, Monroe and Bothell are in this district.
Inslee, 57, of Bainbridge Island, is seeking a sixth term in this seat.
He served in the state Legislature from 1988-92. In 1992, while living in Selah, he won the 4th Congressional District seat in central Washington. He lost re-election, moved west in 1995 and won his first term in his current seat in 1998.
Inslee voted against the $700 billion plan for bailing out failed banks and loan institutions and rescuing homeowners facing foreclosure.
Ishmael, 56, is founder and managing partner of Suasor Consulting Group Ltd. He served on the Issaquah School Board and stepped down for his 2006 campaign.
He said he too would have voted against the federal plan to stabilize financial markets because the federal government should not intervene directly in the affairs of firms on Wall Street.
Inslee opposed the war in Iraq and wants to put more troops in Afghanistan where he says the greatest risk of increased global terrorism is incubating.
Inslee is recognized for introducing proposals to develop and distribute power from alternative sources of energy such as wind, waves, solar and geothermal.
He opposes oil drilling offshore and in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). He views use of power derived from nuclear and coal as components of a national energy policy.
Ishmael said it's time to leave Iraq and refocus the attention of the military to Afghanistan where the Taliban are operating.
On energy, he said oil drilling should be encouraged offshore, in ANWR and wherever it can be done responsibly. Developing technology to safely extract energy from coal through gasification at high heat should be pursued.
And nuclear power plants, for which he said 24 applications are pending, should be built.
