The 2008 presidential campaign appears to have begun already and the first salvo from a White House hopeful was aimed squarely at Oregonians.

Sen. Sam Brownback took the opportunity this week to slam Oregon's assisted-suicide law. The Kansas Republican, chairman of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on the Constitution and civil rights, all but accused us of murder.

Oregonians' moral guidelines are blurred because of the law, Brownback charged, adding patients with long-term illnesses will be at risk from greedy insurance companies who would reap the benefits of early deaths.

It's a purely political ploy, but it is guaranteed to garner Brownback press and make him appear to be valiantly defending Americans' values, morals - indeed, their very lives.

Carefully kept records in Oregon fly in the face of Brownback's charges that the next thing you know, there will be “involuntary euthanasia” here. Since the law took effect in 1998, an average of 31 people have taken advantage of the assisted-suicide law - out of the state's annual average of 31,000 deaths.

Although the Supreme Court upheld the state's death with dignity act in January, there are lawmakers who are fixed on having Congress repeal it. Interestingly, their ranks don't include any of Oregon's representatives - most of whom personally oppose assisted suicide. Indeed, Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden has vowed to block any move by other lawmakers to strike down Oregon's law, and Republican Gordon Smith has indicated he's satisfied with the Supreme Court's decision.

It's hardly a surprise, however, that Republican presidential wanna-be's will focus on Oregon's law. After all, the Bush administration has repeatedly tried to thwart the will of this state's voters. We're easy targets for politicians who prefer to grandstand rather than address serious issues like the war in Iraq - which has resulted in 10 times more deaths than this state's assisted-suicide law.