Here's an expert opinion on the race between 5th District Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris and Democratic challenger Peter Goldmark:

"It's a closer race than I first imagined."

You can take that to the bank because it came from McMorris herself. The AP reports:

Jim Camden of The Spokesman-Review was able to listen to McMorris chatting with Idaho Sen. Larry Craig as he stood by for a teleconference with reporters.

Before the teleconference began, instead of being placed on hold, Camden was placed on mute, so he was able to hear the discussion between McMorris and Craig, but was unable to tell them he was listening.

Camden says McMorris told Craig, "It's a closer race than I first imagined."

She said Goldmark was "hitting very hard" at her veterans budget votes, and on recent cuts in veterans services. Camden says McMorris asked Craig to emphasize the increase in overall veterans funding.

National experts agree with McMorris and the race has been getting increased attention in the final weeks of the campaign.

It's also getting plenty of ink in The Spokesman-Review. SR blogger Frank Sennett says a new TV ad from McMorris "takes a wild turn" when it says Goldmark thinks "George Bush and the Republicans caused 9/11."

Wow.

That assertion apparently is based on the following passage from Joel Connelly's Oct. 6 column in the Seattle P-I:

Goldmark "has also taken up journalist Bob Woodward's claim that senior Bush administration brass received but ignored warnings of an imminent al-Qaida attack.

" '9/11 was directly attributable to George Bush and the Republican administration,' Goldmark told a Seattle fundraiser."

Clearly, Goldmark was saying the administration ignored dire warnings of an attack. To then conclude that heeding those warnings would have prevented 9/11 is obviously a stretch. (I'd like to see that comment in its full context to see how far he was climbing out on a limb.)

But the statement in no way supports painting Goldmark as a kooky conspiracist who believes "George Bush and the Republicans caused 9/11." That charge is a terrible distortion of what Goldmark actually said, and it smacks of desperation.

Sennett also recorded a robo-call he got at home from the Goldmark campaign. It's pretty hard-hitting, too.

"I'm Ian Anderson, Corporal, United States Marine Corps, medically retired. Peter Goldmark is strong on national security. I've served our nation in Iraq, so I've seen scum and I've seen toughness. Cathy McMorris' new ad is lying about Peter Goldmark. It's very disrespectful and unethical. ... "

Scum vs. toughness... and Goldmark is strong. Pretty tough implication there.