The congressional campaign rivals haven't actually reached each other on the telephone, but they're on their way to becoming regular pen-pals.

Democratic congressional candidate Peter Welch said he tried calling his opponent, Republican Martha Rainville, today to discuss her proposal to limit spending in the campaign to $1 million. She wasn't available. He did send her a two-page letter in response to her request for a pledge to limit spending on the campaign to $1 million. In it, he lists several issues he'd like clarified before he considers her pledge.

Welch pointed to the $4.5 million the National Republican Congressional Committee spent on a California special election and asked, "What recourse will candidates have if a large sum of money is spent by a third party in the final weeks or even days of the campaign?"
He wanted to know what Rainville's plans for three joint fund-raising committee and a bank account in Washington she established.

He also asked her to disclose every contribution and expenditure on her Federal Election Commission filings. Such detailed disclosures aren't required, but Welch's campaign has made them from the start.

Beyond talk about spending, Welch proposed four "Sunday Conversations on the Green" with all of the congressional candidates this summer. If they meet face to face, will they still keep up the letter writing?
_ Terri Hallenbeck