Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, April 23, 1990 TAG: 9004230325
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A5 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
Wilder gets about 250 invitations a week to speak on his platform of fiscal conservatism and social progressivism that he says helped make him the nation's first elected black governor.
"It's really caught on around the country - the New Mainstream," he said in an interview last week, shortly before he reached his 100th day in office Sunday.
Although he says national office isn't on his agenda, Wilder has traveled twice to California and will speak at a Democratic political event in New Hampshire in June. Both states will hold early presidential primaries in 1992.
"I haven't really taken any time from state activities to go to any other place," he said.
Wilder's message has worried some black political scientists who say he has neglected black issues in an attempt to appeal to white voters.
They point to his push to expand the death penalty in Virginia, his opposition to creating a majority black congressional district in the state and his refusal to take a stand on whether women should be admitted to tax-supported Virginia Military Institute.
"I think the reluctance to take a stronger stand on the VMI issue is particularly troubling," said Charles E. Jones, an associate professor of political science at Old Dominion University in Norfolk. "If we don't have black politicians taking a more aggressive stand on that, then who is?"
"If Doug Wilder's agenda is just going to be politics as usual, then I don't think there's that much for blacks to be excited about," said Georgia Persons, associate professor of political science at Georgia Tech University.
Wilder said his priorities - fighting the drug problem, eliminating disparity among local school systems and improving early childhood education - will benefit blacks as well as whites.
"Blacks are disproportionately affected," he said. "I'm not unaware of it."
The state NAACP has refused to criticize Wilder even though it disagrees with him on the death penalty and redistricting.
"I said from the beginning that Doug Wilder was not going to be a black panacea governor," said Jack W. Gravely, president of the state branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
"If he did not do what he's doing now, the press would label him a wild-eyed Jesse Jackson," Gravely said.
Wilder has been popular nationally because he is positioning himself as an alternative to Jackson, who represents the Democratic Party's liberal wing, said Robert Holsworth, a political analyst at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. But Wilder has yet to prove himself in the governor's mansion, Holsworth said.
"We've yet to see many substantive initiatives put forward by the governor," he said. "He's been much more successful in flexing his political muscles and gaining national attention than he has been in developing a clear agenda for Virginia."
State Sen. Joseph Gartlan of Fairfax, one of the few Democrats willing to criticize the governor publicly, said he is still waiting for Wilder to explain his pledge to help youth and families and his vision for the state.
"He really hasn't filled that void yet," Gartlan said.
In speeches out of state, Wilder boasted about balancing the state budget without mentioning that it is required by state law, and called his $200 million budget reserve a "rainy day" fund even though it is designated for teacher raises in 1991, Gartlan said.
"It's something of a triumph of form over substance," he said.
Gartlan also said Wilder's handling of several political appointments "left a very bad taste in a lot of people's mouths."
Wilder replaced some close associates of former Democratic Gov. Gerald Baliles on boards and commissions with his own supporters and caused a minor flap when he delayed approving low-numbered license plates that Baliles had requested for his former aides.
"One would almost think that he was a Republican governor in terms of Wilder's treatment of him," Holsworth said of Baliles, who has declined to comment on Wilder.
Holsworth said Wilder's rough treatment of fellow Democrats could backfire when he needs their support later, but the governor said he is not concerned.
"In politics, people need each other," he said.
Wilder also disputed the notion that Democrats in the General Assembly are dissatisfied with him.
"If that were the case, they wouldn't be supporting me as they do," Wilder said. He noted that the legislature granted his requests for a cap on college tuition increases, a budget reserve and a repeal of the sales tax on non-prescription drugs.
"I've been very impressed with the degree of support," he said.
by CNB