Dear Idahoans: When I look at what happened in Washington, D.C., to Rep. Charles Rangle, I see a lot of parallels to our own state Rep. Phil Hart.

Rangle did not pay his taxes. Hart did not pay his taxes.

Rangle was on a "tax" committee and Hart was on a "tax" committee.

Rangle was forced to step down from his chairmanship. Hart was forced to step down from the committee.

There are some differences though.

Rangle only owed tens of thousands in federal taxes. Hart owes hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes. I don't think Rangle stole any timber and then failed to pay for the full consequences of his actions.

Nevertheless, Rangle was censured. It looks like Hart will once again escape the demands of ethical conduct. When will our Republican leaders wake up and realize that the ethics rules apply to them regardless of their ability to overpower all complaints?

VERN STAMBAUGH

Hayden