Rep. George Miller, D-Concord, is becoming the California congressman that San Joaquin Valley lawmakers love to hate.

Miller, of course, has long been a target for the ire of Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Visalia. When Nunes recites the phrase "radical environmentalist," he's conjuring visions of Miller. Now, Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, is escalating his own rhetoric. On Monday, responding to reports that Miller was promising to press for tighter Valley water restrictions in order to protect salmon, Costa declared:

"We have stood up to the bully tactics of extreme environmentalists whose agenda ignores our families and our futures. We've made progress. More water will flow to our Valley and George Miller doesn't like it."

Then Costa gets personal.

"George Miller is a poster boy for polluters whose toxic waste creates stress factors that kill fish upstream while he pushes for water restrictions that solely blame and punish us for dwindling fish populations. He is the flag carrier for outsiders who are willing to destroy our Valley way of life, our economy and our families."

Not that Miller is a shrinking violet. Speaking of Valley farmers, he was quoted as saying:

"That one side of the state gets to rip off the other side is not sustainable, politically or environmentally. For 10 years they've violated the laws and the science in the name of greed. But we've beat them before and we'll beat them again."