Posted on 03/05/2006 5:06:44 PM PST by NormsRevenge
In their battle to replace former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham, Republicans are embracing their party's ideals while distancing themselves from its record in Washington.
As deficits balloon and scandals multiply under a Republican-controlled Congress, these candidates are touting independence over party loyalty and lashing out at the GOP as often as they criticize Democrats.
Setting the tone is millionaire businessman Eric Roach, whose television commercials ask, “When did Congress begin losing touch?”
“I think it began when Republicans quit being Republicans,” Roach answers in the ad. “You know, they were sent to Congress to bring the budget in balance, to restore our fiscal responsibility, to strengthen our borders, to make our country stronger – and they ended up acting like Democrats.”
It's not unusual for Republicans to run for Congress while running against it. But in the 50th Congressional District, which has been rocked by Cunningham's scandalous behavior, the corrupting influences of money and power are foremost in the minds of voters.
Political scientist Gary Jacobson, an expert on Congress at the University of California San Diego, said what makes this election different for Republicans is that to win, they must campaign against their party's problems.
“So they can't pretend to be the most vigorous Democrat-basher,” Jacobson said. “They can't blame Democrats for the budget or Cunningham.”
Until the April 11 special election, the rhetoric is likely to get more fervent as 14 Republican candidates try to differentiate themselves from each other and Congress. Roach has already spent more than $750,000 – mostly his own money – on his campaign.
Two Democrats are in the race: Cardiff school board member Francine Busby and law student and retired bank executive Chris Young.
This week, Busby announced that she has raised more than $1 million. Much of it will be used to advertise that she's removed from what she and other Democrats are calling the “culture of corruption” in Washington.
One Libertarian and one independent are also running.
Maybe it's no wonder that the GOP candidates feel that to win, they must attack the status quo: It was Cunningham's greed that prompted the election. The Rancho Santa Fe Republican resigned in disgrace last year after admitting to taking $2.4 million in bribes.
On Friday, he was sentenced to eight years and four months in federal prison.
The resignation created a rare open seat in the 50th District, which stretches from Clairemont and La Jolla up to Escondido and Carlsbad. The district's registered voters are 44 percent Republican and 30 percent Democrat, with 22 percent declining to state an affiliation and smaller parties making up the rest.
In the April 11 special election, voters will select someone from the full slate of candidates to finish Cunningham's term, which runs through Jan. 3. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent, the top vote-getter from each party will be in a runoff election June 6.
That's also the date of the primary to fill the next two-year term in the 50th District. Most candidates running in the special election also expect to run in the primary election.
Democrats hope the Cunningham scandal and other missteps by Republicans will sway swing voters and independents their way. Democrats had controlled the House for 40 years when then-Rep. Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., in 1994 proposed his “Contract With America,” which promised tax cuts, smaller government and a strong defense.
After Republicans won control of both houses of Congress that year, the GOP's popularity crested 2000, when it also captured the White House. But on its watch, the federal budget has gone from having a $128 billion surplus to a deficit of more than $337 billion this year. Since his election, President Bush has never vetoed a spending bill.
“We are in charge, but we still need reform,” said Gingrich, a former House speaker.
As he sees it, the first wave of Republican reform washed through when Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980, the second with his “Contract With America,” and the third must happen now.
He said the 50th District race – and the candidates' pressing need to appear as conservative as possible without seeming as Republican as possible – reflects that reality.
“Republicans are coming to grips with the dilemma: Can we reform enough to remain a majority, or do the Democrats have to take over before we are forced to reform?” Gingrich asked. “I think we can stay a majority.”
Being in control has led to another problem for Republican candidates: no real Democratic bogeyman to rail against.
“Even in recent history, Republicans had a convenient Democratic target,” said Jack Pitney, professor of government at Claremont McKenna College. “During the Clinton administration, they ran against Clinton. Then (former Senate Majority Leader) Tom Daschle and the obstructionists of the Senate, but now that they control, if you want to separate yourself from Washington, you have to separate yourself from other Republicans.”
GOP candidates across the nation are striking similar independent poses, said Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. In Ohio, for instance, Republican candidates are shying away from being associated with Republican Gov. Bob Taft, who was convicted of violating ethics laws, Sabato said.
“In California, with the strong Democratic tilt and Bush's low popularity, it's important for Republicans to appear as independent as possible,” he said. “But they can't go too far because then they'll alienate the base.”
Candidates react So the Republicans candidates are forced into a peculiar dance. A survey of Republicans in the race shows that a majority support the president's policies, but also see the need to cut spending and reform ethics in Congress.
At a recent debate in Rancho Santa Fe, state Sen. Bill Morrow said that as a congressman, he would fight corruption the same way he did as a Marine Corps prosecutor. He went on to assail government spending.
“In the last five years, federal spending has increased 33 percent, double the rate of the Clinton years. It's inexcusable; it's inexcusable,” Morrow said. “The message has got to be received by the Republican leadership in Congress. I'm here to give it.”
Jacobson said he expects that message to resonate with Republican voters.
“It doesn't hurt candidates to criticize them (Republicans in the House), because the criticism is shared with their Republican voters,” Jacobson said. “Most are unhappy with corruption and spending . . . so their charge is to prove they are the most anti-corrupt. They are competing for mantle of who will be the toughest on the deficit.”
Another way is for candidates to distance themselves from the current Congress and associate themselves with earlier, headier Republican times.
“We have to prove who we are again,” defense contractor and candidate Scott Orren said. “Ten years ago, Newt Gingrich started a revolution, and that's the type of leadership I want to see back in Washington.”
Lobbyist and former Rep. Brian Bilbray often boasts of his endorsement from Gingrich in this race and that he was a member of the congressional freshman class in 1995, the year Republicans took control of both houses of Congress.
Other candidates invoke Reagan. San Diego political consultant John Dadian said the safest thing a candidate can say is, “I'm a Reagan Republican.”
What it will take to win
In crafting their messages, the Republicans are scrambling for small percentages of the vote because there are so many candidates and because special elections typically have a low voter turnout. The leading Democrat, Busby, ran against Cunningham two years ago and has strong support and good name recognition among Democrats in the region, as well as in Washington.
“It's a conservative district, but not hard right,” Sabato said. “I happen to think a Republican will win eventually, but this could be interesting. Francine Busby could end up doing better than anybody expected.”
San Diego County Republican Party Chairman Ron Nehring said that's why victory will go to the candidate who can build the biggest base of passionate supporters.
“I think the crucial factor is how many 'broken glass' supporters a candidate has – that is, supporters who will crawl over a mile of broken glass to vote for their candidate,” Nehring said.
Such supporters will make the difference because they'll drive their own cars to pick up absentee ballots or take people to the polls, Pitney said.
To build that base, candidates are filming television commercials, running newspaper ads, walking door to door and attending several forums each week through April 11.
At each, the call for a better Republican Party is loud.
“Twenty-five years ago, Ronald Reagan inspired a nation with a bold agenda that ushered in an era of values and prosperity,” businessman Bill Hauf says in one of his radio advertisements. “I want to restore Reagan's vision. I want to remove the grip that special interests have on Congress. I want to stop out-of-control and wasteful spending, cut record deficits and secure our borders and our homeland.”
'Special K'
Candidates react So the Republicans candidates are forced into a peculiar dance. A survey of Republicans in the race shows that a majority support the president's policies, but also see the need to cut spending and reform ethics in Congress.
The general in this race will be tight. The GOP margin in this district minus the GOP erosion makes it that way. It probably does not matter too much who wins the GOP primary, I suspect, vis a vis this prediction.
Who is considered the front-runner? I'd think that would be state Senator Bill Morrow, who already represents most of the district. But he and Howard Kaloogian have similar views and seem to appeal to the same constituancy.
18 folks running for 2 positions,, runoffs likely, hard to say or rather, I won't hazard a guess. It's a crap shoot at this point.
Candidates give views on ethics, Bush policies
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/politics/20060305-9999-1n5issues.html
By Dani Dodge
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 5, 2006
In a race where integrity is everything, Republican candidates running to replace disgraced former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham agree on one thing: If they win, they won't take gifts from lobbyists.
Not only would they refuse gifts and travel from lobbyists, but they would expect their staff members to do the same, according to a questionnaire GOP candidates answered for The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Former Del Mar Mayor Richard Earnest went one step further.
“I will refuse to accept anything of value from any person or entity other than an immediate family member, and I will fire any member of my staff who does so,” he wrote.
As well as determining how the Republican candidates viewed ethics in Congress, the survey explored how closely candidates align themselves with the president's policies and asked them to explain how they would do things differently from the current GOP-controlled Congress. The survey targeted only the Republican candidates in the race because of their large number – 14 – as well as the turmoil within the party.
There are four other candidates in the race: Democrats Francine Busby and Chris Young, independent William Griffith and Libertarian Paul King.
While the majority of the Republican candidates tended to agree on issues, their plans for how to clean up Congress and rein in spending varied greatly. The only areas of complete agreement were in lobbying reforms. Candidates said lobbyist gifts should be banned and pledged not to take gifts regardless of whether a rule is made.
The majority of candidates agreed with President Bush's conduct in the war, tax cuts and surveillance without a warrant, while rejecting his guest-worker program either wholly or just the portion that could allow amnesty for illegal immigrants.
All but two – former Superior Court Judge Victor Ramirez and retired ship inspector Milton Gale – supported the president's desire to make tax cuts permanent and abolish capital-gains taxes.
Candidates also supported Bush's conduct in the war.
“With our help, I believe the Iraqi people will succeed in establishing an elected government that will no longer tolerate terrorist activities,” businessman Alan Uke wrote.
But three candidates – sales director Bill Boyer, Gale and Ramirez – said they objected to the open-ended nature of the conflict.
“I support the president's intention to defend America,” Ramirez wrote. “However, the military objectives in the war against Iraq were accomplished in mid-2003.”
The same strong majority of 11 supported Bush's policies of surveillance without a court warrant, although Uke had a caveat: only during times of war or national crisis.
“The intelligence community isn't eavesdropping on your telephone calls to hear about our personal lives,” wrote lobbyist Brian Bilbray, a former congressman. “They're listening for someone's plan to instigate grave and massive devastation to our country.”
Ramirez, Gale and Boyer opposed the policy. Boyer noted that judges are available 24 hours a day to approve the warrants for eavesdropping if necessary.
Banning “earmarks” also split the field of candidates. While the majority believe that banning earmarks – funding that's quietly slipped into bills before approval – would help clean up Congress and reduce the deficit, five candidates felt earmarks had their place.
Real estate investor Delecia Holt, who also does homeland security contracting, said earmarks can help areas hit by natural disasters. Former Chargers defensive back Scott Turner pointed out that earmarks can contribute money to worthy causes like the Boys & Girls Club.
Bilbray said problems arise when earmarking is done in secret, so he proposed a ban on earmarks done behind closed doors. Boyer said Congress should vote on each earmark. Uke believes each district should have a small budget for earmarked projects.
Candidates had a number of ideas for cleaning up the political system, including campaign finance reform, tougher penalties for congressional misconduct, enforcing ethics rules more strenuously, outside oversight of ethics and strengthening the House ethics committee.
Earnest, Boyer and defense contractor Scott Orren said term limits may help. Bilbray, state Sen. Bill Morrow and businessman Bill Hauf suggested corrupt politicians shouldn't get congressional pensions, a clear reference to Cunningham, who will continue to receive an annual pension worth roughly $40,000 during his prison sentence of eight years and four months. Uke, Morrow and Earnest recommended more limits on members of Congress who become lobbyists.
Holt said better use of the federal reporting and tracking systems could help identify misused funds, illegal gifts and “ . . . contracts to companies and countries with special interests that harm this nation.”
Other candidates chose simpler solutions: California Highway Patrol Sgt. Jeff Newsome said lobbyists should be banned from the District of Columbia and government offices. Attorney Howard Kaloogian, a former state assemblyman, said, “Elect people of character.”
Candidates also thought it was high time to rein in government spending. Morrow suggested across-the-board cuts in all but defense spending. Hauf and Earnest proposed a complete review of government expenditures similar to President Reagan's Grace Commission. Uke, Ramirez and Kaloogian want to freeze spending.
“Implement a freeze on the total dollars spent so that regardless of how much revenue comes in, we only spend as much next year as we do this year,” Kaloogian said.
I think Roach should save his money. This is my district, and I have never heard of him.
If you look at the map, all the beach towns until you hit Carlsbad are now Dem, some very decisively so. Putting aside Rancho Sante Fe, that place where Cunningham bought his palace with his bribe money (which is the richest town in the united states I think, and has four precincts), the richer the precinct, the more Dem it is, in general.
As you have seen on San Diego TV stations, Kaloogian;s ads
show him in Sacramento. His campaign address, Sacramento.
If Kaloogian is running for congress to rep. one of our dists. he would do well to do his ads in San Diego and his campaign address should be San Diego. Many folks have picked up on this.
Isn't that a kind of empty suit comment? I mean it is such a cliche, and never happens in practice because it is just that stupid. That is the comment of someone who has not bothered to make any choices, and/or doesn't have a clue.
I know mushy Bilbray is being pushed by the party and area Congressmen. Howard appeals to rabble-roused conservative activists. Morrow is conservative but not the loud activist that Howard is; he was considered Howard's political mentor at one point.
Others are wasting their money, imho. There are some claiming to be conservative, one whose record sounds like Duke (pushing Vietnam pilot service), some who have no chance of being known well enough to make it, and some who just annoy. The glossy ads go right to the recycle bin and I hang up no matter which candidate's recorded message it is.
Loud activists are what we need.
Go Kaloogian!!!
He has a record to run on, whatever you think of his cuts proposal. Proposing a spending freeze is no less of a cliche.
Actually, I know Morrow, and have met him in a discussion in a conference room when he was being vetted for something by the Lincoln Club. He came across as an amiable and reasonably intelligent and articulate chap. But he ran a VERY dirty late hit mail campaign in the primary to win his assembly seat back when to launch his political career (a bit too lean and hungry action in my book), the lines of which took in my Orange County precinct at that time. For that, he is a persona non gratia in my mind. But I don't live in the Cunningham district, so I can't vote there. And I don't have a clue whom I would vote for in the primary. I just don't know enough about the candidates, other than my vignette about Morrow, and vague impression that Bilbray is a bit of a lightweight.
Morrow would be one of the few in the lot to be a good congressman.
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