Rep. George Nethercutt, a U.S. congressman from Spokane, has been traveling all around the state in the last few months for a couple of reasons. He’s been handing out medals in a program he created to recognize Washington’s World War II veterans who were involved in D-Day.

He’s also running for the U.S. Senate against Patty Murray. It’s a position, he claims, has been identified by the Democrats as the most vulnerable in the country.

“It’s the toughest seat in the country to hold,” he said.

Nethercutt recently stopped in Oak Harbor to tour the Navy base, hold a round-table discussion with Mayor Patty Cohen and other officials, and present a medal to a South Whidbey man who was involved in D-Day.

If he wins the election, Nethercutt said he will be an invaluable friend for Oak Harbor and other Washington communities that are facing the prospects of base closure. He said he promises to fight to keep the bases within the state open and alive because they are “well situated” to meet the nation’s defense needs.

“I’m a strong advocate for the bases,” he said. “Whidbey Island is an exciting, forward-thinking base and the missions are important ones.”

Above all, Nethercutt said he is all about national defense. He said he helped increase defense spending by 40 percent when he was vice chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. Nethercutt faults Murray for voting against defense on a number of occasions.

Yet Alex Glass, communications director for Murray, points out that the senator voted in favor of every Senate defense appropriations bill, which amounts to $2.3 trillion in 12 years.

“Sen. Murray takes a back seat to no one when it comes to defending our country and defending our military,” Glass said.

Glass said Murray will also continue working to keep the state’s military bases intact. Murray visited with the Army’s 81st brigade at Fort Lewis earlier this year and discovered that soldiers were due to be sent to Iraq without body armor. Also, the soldiers’ family members complained about financial hardship and lack of benefits.

Glass said Murray stood up to the Pentagon and complained about the lack of body armor. She also introduced a bill to increase benefits for the National Guard and reserves.

“Nethercutt attacked her for scaring troops,” Glass said, “but she got things accomplished. Our troops are safer and their families are more secure because of her actions.”

Glass pointed out that Nethercutt voted against an amendment last year to provide an additional $1,500 to service members in Iraq and Afghanistan.

As a member of Congress, Nethercutt has visited military bases all over the world. He said those experiences only increased his respect for the military.

“It comes from my sense of patriotism,” he said. “I think our military is the best in the world.”

Nethercutt got the idea for handing out medals to veterans of the Normandy Invasion when he was in France for the 50th anniversary of D-Day and laid a wreath in the cemetery in honor of soldiers from Washington State.

At that time, an organization was giving out medals to D-Day survivors, but Nethercutt said they “ran out of money and energy.” He decided to take over the task by personally giving out the medals to D-Day survivors in the state. Global Credit Union agreed to pay for the medals.

“I had such respect for the military and have had for many years,” Nethercutt said, “because it is so critically important to our state and our country.”

Beyond defense, Nethercutt also stresses the importance of the economy and job creation; he thinks lowering taxes is the way to do it. He has worked to lower taxes in the past, hopes to make tax relief permanent and plans to lower taxes even further through his sales-tax relief plan, which would allow taxpayers to itemize sales tax on their tax returns.

Glass, however, said that sales-tax deductibility is not a unique idea and that Murray has supported it, and will continue to. Murray supports tax relief targeted at the middle class, Glass said, in contrast to the Republicans. While Bush’s tax relief plan gives the average middle-class family $650 a year in tax breaks, the wealthiest 1 percent get 90 times that.

Nethercutt said business groups in the state have ”scored” him favorably, while Murray received poor grades. “They told me they haven’t been represented well by the incumbent senator,” he said.

Glass said she hasn’t seen such evidence. She said Murray supported business through research-and-development tax credits and by bringing $275 million in federal transportation funding to the state. Business people, she said, have consistently indicated that transportation problems are their greatest concern in Washington.

While Nethercutt pointed out that Murray was critical of Bush’s Medicare drug benefit, Glass criticized his stance on medical issues. She said Nethercutt repeatedly voted against guaranteeing prescription drug benefits to rural seniors; repeatedly voted to slash funding for Medicare and Medicaid; voted against ensuring health care coverage for breast cancer patients; voted to eliminate federal nursing home standards; voted against considering legislation to speed approval of generic drugs at lower costs.

Nethercutt positions himself as a politician who wants to get things done and fits in the current climate in Washington, D.C., well. He describes Murray as someone who sees her role as defying President George W. Bush’s agenda.

“I’m the antidote to her obstructionist vote,” he said.

Glass countered that Washington voters don’t want their senator to be a rubber stamper, but someone who will “ask important questions” and fight against policies that could hurt the state.

“At time when the Republicans control the White House, the House and the Senate and they decide what comes to the floor, I don’t know how (Nethercutt) can describe Sen. Murray as obstructionist,” Glass said.

“She is not going to be bullied into supporting policies that are not good for Washington and not good the the nation.”