In his March 29 column ("Ehrlich: A right-wing wolf in moderate sheep's clothing", Prof. Allan Lichtman seriously skewed the facts about my congressional voting record. I appreciate the opportunity to set the record straight.

I am an independent-minded, pro-defense fiscal conservative with moderate views on many issues. I have served in public office for 16 years, with thousands of votes under my belt. National Journal, for instance, ranks my votes in the 106th Congress right down the middle. On key economic issues, 41 percent liberal, 58 percent conservative; on social policy, 47 percent liberal, 52 percent conservative; and on foreign policy, 12 percent liberal, 78 percent conservative.

Education and children

I voted in 1995 to eliminate the Department of Education because it took money out of the classrooms. I supported a plan to send block grants to states to meet their needs. Dollars belong in the classroom, not in a federal bureaucracy, and I lost confidence in the ability of the Department of Education to do its job.

Lichtman fails to reveal that I support increased appropriations for education, including $47.6 billion for the current year. Also, I voted to fully fund the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which helps pay for the education of disadvantaged children. I am especially proud to support a revamped Program Head Start.

Choice

This is an area where the professor's attempts to demonize and distort fails the laugh test. The fact is this: I strongly support a woman's right to choose. Planned Parenthood of Maryland rated my record at 63 percent in 2001, 73 percent in 2000 and 70 percent in 1999. Politics in America 2002 notes that I have a "largely pro-abortion rights record." I support common-sense restrictions on abortion.

Environmental protection

I wonder if Lichtman has ever traveled to the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge. Last year, I did and left convinced that safe, environmentally sensitive drilling using modern technology can be deployed there.

The plan I support would use 2,000 acres in the 19.6 million-acre refuge. These oil deposits are equivalent to about 30 years' worth of Saudi oil imports. Our nation imports more than 50 percent of its oil, much of it from the unstable Middle East. As we continue to support new and alternative technologies, we cannot afford to ignore safe ways of finding oil we own to keep our country operating.

I voted against The Clean Water Acts Amendments of 1995 because the bill would have removed up to 80 percent of Maryland's wetlands from federal protection. In 2000, I co-sponsored and voted for the Conservation and Reinvestment Act, which set aside $2.8 billion annually to purchase environmentally sensitive land and fund important conservation efforts. Moreover, I have supported funding increases for the Department of the Interior and the Environmental Protection Agency. Finally, I support efforts to use federal dollars to fund sewage treatment plants nationwide to reduce the flow of deadly nutrients in our waters.

Campaign finance reform

The professor is right that I opposed the version of the campaign finance legislation that passed the House last month. Yet, his characterization that the American people demand this reform is ludicrous. Polls consistently show that campaign finance reform generates few respondents who view it as a major issue.

I opted to oppose this bill because it was flawed. It bans the use of soft money raising by national parties and federal candidates and curbs state party soft money spending on voter registration drives, voter identification and get-out-the-vote drives. In place of this "reform," I support immediate disclosure of meetings, political parties matching payments to challengers to raise competition, requiring that at least half of a candidate's money be raised in his home state or district, full electronic disclosure, and preventing foreign citizens from funneling money into our political process.

Gun control and safety

Lichtman is wrong about my view of gun control measures. I do not own a gun, but I support the right of gun ownership. I support common sense limitations on gun use and gun safety. I support comprehensive background investigations through the National Instant Check System. I voted for legislation that mandated there be a national criminal record check on the buyer of every firearm purchased at a gun show anywhere in the country. I want to prohibit people who commit violent acts of juvenile delinquency from possessing firearms as adults. Most importantly, I am a champion of "Project Exile," a program that puts gun-toting criminals behind bars for a minimum of five years. Simply put, my view is to target individuals who should not possess a gun of any kind.

Health care

Here, the professor claims I am against legislation that I am working on in Congress. The fact is my colleagues and I are drafting an affordable Medicare prescription drug bill, which we hope to pass this year. The House set aside $300 billion for this bill. I also support a strong patients bill of rights, which protects patients but does not jeopardize employers. I look forward to a conference bill on this issue to send a strong patients rights bill to the president later this year.

I am a champion of the mentally ill and a prime sponsor of federal legislation to ensure mental health parity in private insurance and in Medicare.

I am an advocate of the nursing profession and am working in a bipartisan manner to come to a final agreement on the Nurse Reinvestment Act, which would help nurses pay for schooling if they pledge to work in medically underserved areas.

I am co-chairman of the Congressional Biotechnology Caucus and work every day for biotechnology research and development to create new products to treat diseases.

One of the lessons I've learned in 16 years in elective office is that voters appreciate knowing the full picture. In a congressional district with a 2-1 Democratic edge in voter registration, I have received 70 percent of the vote. Perhaps the professor should be as sophisticated and fair in his analysis as the voters.

Robert L. Ehrlich, a Republican from Timonium, represents District 2 in the U.S. House of Representatives. He also is an announced candidate for governor.