deficit hAwKs 179
Other than Alaska and Hawaii, the state of Washington is farther away
from the nation’s capital than any other place in America, and it feels that
separateness, according to Sen. Gorton. He will tell you that the political
psychology of the state is such that its citizens are more concerned with
matters state and local than national. They are neither fazed, nor do they
seek actively to faze, the ways of Washington, D.C. With a smile, Slade
Gorton says, “That’s probably one of the reasons senators from Washing-
ton tend to serve so long.” Of course, this was entirely all right with him.^16