Airbus

Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) is seeking a spot on the House Ways and Means committee after winning his third term and second consecutive victory over Darcy Burner this fall, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

The House Ways and Means Committee oversees governmental revenue programs such as taxation and tariffs as well as Social Security and Medicare, and was a long-time perch for Reichert's predecessor, the late Rep. Jennifer Dunn.

If he is appointed to the influential committee, it will provide a boost for Reichert's political resume as he continues to defy the political logic as the only House Republican from Western Washington. He was targeted by Democrats this year for his congressional effectiveness rating, which placed him among the least powerful in the House.

The Air Force tanker deal that caused so much uproar among Washington's elected officials because a large military contract was given to European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. and Northrop-Grumman instead of local firm Boeing has not been used to score political points until Monday.

Politico.com reports on a new development where the campaign of Darcy Burner (D-Carnation) is accusing Rep. Dave Reichert's campaign of trying to have it both ways on the issue.

Reichert has been an outspoken critic of the deal, attempting most recently to get pro-EADS advertisements off the radio in Washington, D.C., but Burner's campaign is airing the fact that a recent fundraiser organized for Reichert was arranged by a group called Club 218 which is led by lobbyists for, among other organizations, EADS and fellow Boeing competitor Alabama Aircraft Industries.

UPDATE: Club 218 contains a number of young Republicans, among them a lobbyist for Boeing, Erin Book, who works for Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal.