SPOKANE, Wash. — Some Republican members of Congress from the Northwest are accusing an Idaho lawmaker of conducting secret negotiations with the Democratic governor of Oregon over a controversial proposal to breach four dams on the Snake River to save endangered salmon runs.
But Idaho's Republican Rep. Mike Simpson says he has for several years been telling “everyone who would listen” about his proposal for a comprehensive solution to save salmon.
On Wednesday, Washington Republican Reps. Dan Newhouse and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, and Oregon Republican Rep. Cliff Bentz issued a strongly worded press statement upon learning of a Freedom of Information Act release detailing coordination between the offices of Simpson and Oregon Gov. Kate Brown regarding the proposal to breach the four dams.
