Merkley camp: ‘The only time Smith led was when it was time to take credit’

U.S. Senate candidate Jeff Merkley’s (D-Portland) campaign spokesman said Monday that Merkley had been a big supporter of the county timber payments, he just did not support the $700 billion bailout bill the county timber payments were attached to.

Merkley’s camp was responding to allegations that came earlier Monday from U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith’s (R-Pendleton) campaign, who said that Merkley did not support the county timber payments.

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Portland) and Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Springfield), two elected officials who had advocated strongly for the reauthorization when it was first reintroduced in June, actually ended up voting against the reauthorization of the county payments when the legislation was attached to the bailout package.

Smith spokeswoman Lindsay Gilbride said that Smith advocated just as hard as Wyden and DeFazio, and deserved just as much credit as Wyden for reauthorizing the payments.

"Senator Smith is among the strongest voice on county payments in Congress - and proved it once again last week in supporting the extension,” Gilbride said. “Jeff Merkley is consistently on the wrong side of the fight for rural Oregon."

But Merkley spokesman Matt Canter said Smith did not deserve as much credit as Wyden and DeFazio for securing passage of the legislation that restores federal help for rural Oregon.

“Gordon Smith has not been a leader on this issue,” Canter said. “The only time he led was when it was time to take credit.”