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Rep. John BoehnerU.S. House Minority Leader Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) will be the featured guest at a fundraiser for Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) later this month. The June 28 event will be the second major Reichert benefit of the month, with former Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) in town for a Father's Day event this Sunday.

Boehner will appear at a $100 a plate breakfast at the Bellevue Westin, helping Reichert stock up for what looks to be an expensive race in a rematch with Democrat Darcy Burner (D-Carnation). Burner has been outraising Reichert of late, and her campaign continues to use instances like these to tie Reichert to prominent national Republicans, despite his efforts to paint himself as a moderate in the purple-tinged 8th Congressional District.

"First Bush in August last year and the first lady in February. Now Gingrich this Sunday and Boehner on the 28th," Burner spokesman Sandeep Kaushik said of Reichert's past and future fundraising events. "For a guy who is working to position himself publicly as an independent -- notably, his campaign web site seems scrubbed of any easily discernable references to Reichert being a Republican -- he seems to have close ties to Republican leaders in DC."

The Cook Political Report has released its latest installment of U.S House election rankings, where is lists the nation's most competitive congressional races, to account for the recent conclusion of the Democratic presidential primary. Notably, Washington's 8th District race between Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) and Darcy Burner (D-Carnation) has moved up from "Lean Republican to Toss Up."

According to the Report, there are twenty-seven toss-ups in the country, twenty-one of which are seats held by Republicans. The Burner campaign released a statement on the change in the rankings.

Congressional candidate Darcy BurnerThe news of Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) being called the "Greenest Republican in Congress" today by the interest group Republicans for Environmental Protection may have gone over well in some circles across the 8th District, but the Darcy Burner campaign was not one of them.

Burner spokesman Sandeep Kaushik responded pointedly and at length to Reichert's award, as well as the general perception that he is a green-leaning, moderate Republican. Kaushik suggests that Reichert frequently conspires to pass anti-environmental legislation during the primary procedural voting periods, and that once they become destined for a floor vote he switches his position and votes with the Democrats.

Read the full statement below the fold.

Republicans for Environmental Protection, a non-profit interest group dedicated to preserving "both our environment and our economy for current and future generations of Americans," today awarded U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn), along with Rep. Chris Shays (R-Conn.) and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) with the honor of "Greenest Republican in Congress".

The group also says Reichert has "become a champion of America's parks and wilderness heritage" for his co-sponsorship of the Wild Sky Wilderness Act, which is also the boost that gave him the extra three points on his score.

Darcy BurnerDarcy Burner (D-Carnation) has made a habit of using U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert's big name fundraising events as a rally cry in her bid to unseat Reichert in the 8th District.

Last August, Burner made a youtube video criticizing Reichert's GOP ties and set up an online ActBlue account to call attention to a fundraising visit President Bush made to the 8th District on Reichert's behalf, and then did the same thing this past February when first lady Laura Bush came to town. The Democrat has used these occasions to bring in more than $200,000 to her campaign.

That trend continues today.

U.S. Rep. Dave ReichertThe Washington Post's Chris Cillizza, whose "Friday Line" feature on his politics blog The Fix handicaps the U.S. House races most likely to change parties in the upcoming election every few weeks, today expanded from his usual top 10 up to 20 because of the current political climate.

"Democrats now appear well positioned to make double digit gains in the House -- 20 plus seats is not out of the question -- and, to reflect the widened playing field, The Fix is doubling the Friday House Line from 10 to 20 districts," Cillizza wrote.

That expanded jurisdiction allowed for one of Washington's top political races to get some Fix face time.

And don't forget to vote in this week's Cartoon Caption Contest. Voting ends on Friday at noon.

Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn)U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) earned a dubious distinction in the pages of Roll Call, the newspaper that focuses on congressional politics. Yesterday, the former King County sheriff was featured in an early edition of the newspaper's "10 Most Vulnerable" House incumbents list.

Reichert, involved in a high-profile rematch of 2006 with challenger Darcy Burner (D-Carnation) in the 8th congressional district, was chosen along with four other Republicans and five Democrats from across the country, including well known names such as the scandal embroiled Don Young (R-Alaska) and Nick Lampson (D-Texas), who represents a disrict that heavily favors Republicans.

Here is Roll Call's Josh Kurtz' quick take on the race:

It's tough to go from hero cop to endangered incumbent in such a short stretch of time, but that's the former King County sheriff's fate in a suburban Seattle district that is steadily becoming more Democratic. Reichert still has a reservoir of good will to draw from as he fights off Democrat Darcy Burner for the second straight cycle. But Burner has become a more polished and confident campaigner - and has outpaced the incumbent on the fundraising front for the past few quarters.

Congressional candidate Darcy BurnerDarcy Burner, Democratic candidate for Congress in the 8th District, will be taking her campaign back to the earth this weekend. As part of an event to encourage community service, Burner will join the 47th LD Democrats and the national grassroots service organization Democrats Work to clean up garbage along the Green River at Flaming Geyser State Park this Saturday morning. The cleanup falls at the end of "National Volunteer Week."

The Green River, of course, is the same that helped her opponent Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) gain national attention before he became elected by overseeing the catching of a serial killer whose nickname was shared with the rural Washington river.

Darcy Burner's impressive fundraising may have deterred State Rep. Rodney Tom from running, and Rep. Dave Reichert's incumbent status is keeping out the Republican challengers, but neither barrier is daunting enough to keep two new candidates from coming forward to join the race for Congress in the 8th District.

C. Mark GreeneRunning under the banner of the Party of Commons is C. Mark Greene, a veteran of the USMC and of three past Congressional campaigns, and the self-styled "fighting Democrat" from Orting, James Vaughn, has decided to put his hat in the ring, as well.