Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 7, 1992 TAG: 9201070149
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Medium
PROFESSOR SEEKS GOP'S NOD FOR CONGRESS
Lewis R. Sheckler, a Radford University music professor, announced Monday Sheckler that he will seek the Republican nomination to oppose Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, in this year's 9th District congressional election.Sheckler made it clear he intends to offer himself as a conservative alternative to Boucher, to whom he attached the tag "liberal" 16 times in a 3 1/2-page press release.
"We have a problem with a liberal-dominated, tax-and-spend Congress that is destroying our nation's economy. And liberal Rick Boucher is not part of the solution; he is part of the problem," Sheckler said in his announcement.
Of several Republicans who have shown an interest in running against Boucher in the wake of GOP successes in November's state elections, Sheckler is the first to make a formal announcement.
Other possible GOP candidates are former Congressman William Wampler of Bristol; Gary Weddle, a Radford city councilman; Jerry Kilgore, an assistant U.S. attorney from Scott County; and George Bell, Montgomery County Republican Party chairman.
Sheckler came out Monday in favor of term limits for public office holders; a line-item budget veto for the president; and constitutional amendments requiring a balanced budget, allowing prayer in schools and providing for punishment of flag burners.
Boucher, Sheckler asserted, is a tax-and-spend congressman who supported robbing the Social Security trust fund and expanding the national debt. He also found fault with Boucher's initial opposition to the Persian Gulf war.
"This is Rick Boucher's 10th year in Congress. Before that, he was a state senator for seven years. He has been part of an elite class of professional lawmakers long enough," Sheckler said.
"We need term limits for members of Congress. That seems to be the only way we, the people, can take back control from the professional lawmakers," Sheckler added.
Sheckler questioned the salary and perks, such as "a massage parlor in the basement of the Capitol," that Boucher receives as a congressman. He questioned how much of congressional office expenses go toward getting incumbents re-elected.
"[Boucher's] recent `Report to Southwest Virginia' is his latest re-election campaign mailing paid for by taxpayers," Sheckler said. "Like all other Boucher `reports,' it tells us that Rick Boucher is doing a wonderful job."
Sheckler said Boucher is among liberal congressmen who are responsible for an expanding national debt that is up to $6 trillion. "We must replace Rick Boucher and his fellow liberals in Congress with fiscal conservatives who will bring spending under control."
Boucher, who said he will have little time for campaigning this year, responded that his full effort during this year's congressional session will be devoted to Southwest Virginia's economy and educational and health-care opportunities.
The principal issues when the campaign begins will be "which candidate has most clearly articulated a vision for expanding economic opportunities, creating new jobs, and strengthening our existing industries," Boucher said.
Responding to Sheckler specifically on school prayer, Boucher said he always has supported public-school students' right to engage in truly voluntary prayer. Boucher said he was an architect of a 1984 law that required all school districts to make meeting rooms available to groups wishing to hold voluntary religious meetings outside of school hours.
Sheckler, 61, is a native of Iowa. He holds a degree in music from the University of Illinois and has been a member of the Radford music faculty since 1965. He is married and has three grown sons.
He plans to retire in the spring, clearing the way for a run for Congress. He ran unsuccessfully for the Virginia House of Delegates in 1985 and 1987. He is New River Community College board chairman.
Sheckler and other potential Republican candidates could be trying to swim up a waterfall if Wampler decides to get into the race.
Wampler, known as the "Bald Eagle of the Cumberland," probably would become an instant front-runner for the nomination based on his popularity throughout the Fightin' Ninth. Wampler was unseated by Boucher in 1982.
Wampler couldn't be reached for comment Monday, but Weddle said he expects an announcement from Wampler within a week.
Weddle himself said he plans to announce his intentions in two weeks. He has been making the rounds of party leaders in the district testing the waters, he said.
Bell said he hasn't made up his mind whether he will announce, and said he doubts if he will decide this month. The last time he talked to Wampler, Bell said, Wampler was leaning against a run.
Sheckler said he would not comment about any other Republican who is not an announced candidate for the nomination.
Keywords:
POLITICS