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--> --> Associated Press Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio is flanked by lawmakers, pilots and flight attendants Monday during press conference at the Portland International Airport. Oregon reps make appeal for airport security bill By Christy Karras Associated Press PORTLAND - Oregon Democrats in the U.S. House urged Republicans on Monday not to hold up a bill that would make airport security officers federal government employees. "We've been buying security on the cheap for far too long," said Rep. Peter DeFazio, who helped draft the bill and has been trying to pass airport security legislation since 1987. DeFazio was joined at a news conference at Portland International Airport by fellow Reps. Earl Blumenauer and Darlene Hooley and by pilots, flight attendants and airport employees. A spokeswoman for Rep. David Wu said he supports the same measure. The main competition for the bill supported by the Oregon Democrats is one introduced by House Transportation Committee Chairman Don Young, R-Alaska. It is backed by House GOP leaders and the White House and would give the government control over the supervision and training of airport screeners but would keep them off the federal payroll. House conservatives say a private security work force hired under tough federal standards is preferable to putting all screeners on the federal payroll. "Why would you want to create this huge army or bureaucracy of federal employees?" said Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., chairman of the Transportation subcommittee on aviation. Under the Young-Mica bill, a federal manager would be stationed at every screening station. A group of Republican moderates, joining Democrats, said they have the votes to block the bill if they are prevented from offering one that would make all screeners federal employees. Blumenauer said the Democrats' bill should not be held hostage by Congress, where partisanship has begun to hold up security legislation for the first time since the after the terror attacks six weeks ago. "This is a time when the American public expects the best of American leadership in Washington," Blumenauer said. "We're seeing that bipartisanship and cooperation fray." Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing