Conservative or Hack?
Congressman Gil Gutknecht (R-MN01) has always confounded my efforts to peg him. Occasionally he'll seem like a true conservative (at least fiscally) and sometimes he'll be entirely partisan. I can't quite tell which role he's acting regarding this issue, but I think it's probably a little bit of both. It certainly underlies the inherent heartlessness of hardcore fiscal conservatism. In this case, however, the partisanship comes from a Minnesota congressman unwilling to provide for constituents' heating shortfalls. Rep. Gutknecht certainly isn't acting in his district's best interests in this case.
