EVERETT — Snohomish County Council member John Koster announced Jan. 13 his intention to run for U.S. House of Representatives in Washington’s 2nd Congressional District.

Koster, who was elected to his third and final term on the County Council in November of last year, took aim at incumbent U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, whom he’ll be running against, by criticizing Larsen’s record on government spending, including his support of both bailouts and stimulus packages in the wake of the economic downturn.

“Rick Larsen offers Washingtonians a failed socialist ideology that punishes prosperity and produces mediocrity,” Koster said in a press announcement of his candidacy. “It has failed millions of people every time it has been tried. Government cannot spend us into prosperity.”

Koster touted his own “steady conservative political approach,” and spoke out against what he deemed as a larger and more intrusive government, which he feels is characterized by increased federal micromanagement and losses of both freedoms and personal wealth. He went on to link Larsen to Congressional health care proposals and funding of ACORN, the latter of which he called anti-American.

“What has the federal government done so well that we want to give them our health care?” Koster asked in his press announcement.

If elected, Koster pledged to give voters “a government that takes far less from the people, because it recognizes that wealth is created in the private sector and belongs to you.”

This will mark Koster and Larsen’s second fight for the same Congressional seat. In the September primary of 2000, Koster led Larsen by 4,000 votes, but by the November general election of that same year, Larsen beat Koster by 12,000 votes, finishing with 50.01 percent of the vote to Koster’s 45.93 percent.

For more information on Koster’s Congressional campaign, you may log onto his Web site at www.kosterforcongress.com, call his campaign team at 360-631-6055, or e-mail info@kosterforcongress.com.