Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 17, 1992 TAG: 9202170153
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWAYNE YANCEY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
AMBUSH IN ROANOKE COUNTY
Supporters of John Edwards and John Fishwick ganged up on him at the Roanoke County Democrats' executive committee meeting and forced through a rules change they think might cut into the Vinton insurance man's delegate count in his home county.
Most localities elect convention delegates countywide. The Edwards and Fishwick camps feared that meant Musselwhite could turn out a big hometown crowd from Vinton and sweep all of Roanoke County's 46 delegates - the second-biggest haul available.
Instead, they mandated that the delegates be selected by magisterial district, presumably confining Musselwhite's masses to Vinton and making the other four districts (Cave Spring, Windsor Hills, Hollins and Catawba) more competitive.
Fishwick campaign manager L.A. Harris called the move "a devastating blow" for Musselwhite.
Musselwhite's campaign manager, Susan Swecker, scoffed, "The only difference this makes is it's like having five smaller mass meetings in Roanoke County now, but the result will be the same in the long run. Our support is wide and it's deep."
No matter; the move means that Musselwhite may have to spend more time than he had planned to pull in all of the county's delegates.
A Scorched-Earth policy?
The rules change in Roanoke County caught Musselwhite's supporters by surprise, but not by much.
Although Musselwhite and Edwards have relied mostly on local party activists, Fishwick has imported a staff distinguished by its brashness.
That often signals one thing: a scorched-earth campaign of parliamentary challenges and rules changes to gain a marginal advantage. Why? Because locals know they'll have to work together in future campaigns and tend to shy away from hard-nosed tactics. Outsiders don't have to worry about hurt feelings.
Harris, the Kentucky operative running Fishwick's campaign, says he doesn't anticipate a repeat of the Roanoke County ambush.
Musselwhite's folks aren't so sure. They're braced for a similar challenge tonight in Lynchburg, where Musselwhite has bagged the support of two key Democrats, state Sen. Elliot Schewel and former gubernatorial aide Pat Lambeth.
Little things count
While they were at it, the Edwards and Fishwick backers also made sure Roanoke County's mass meeting will be held at Northside High School instead of at William Byrd High School in Vinton.
The Edwards and Fishwick camps apparently hoped they could get more of their supporters to turn out if the meeting wasn't held in Musselwhite's hometown.
Program note
The Democrats will be extra-busy when they hold their mass meetings April 11 and 13. Not only will they select convention delegates in the congressional race, but they'll also be picking delegates in the presidential contest.
The presidential campaign is often over by the time Virginia gets to vote. But with Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton faltering, there's talk of a late entries by New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, Tennessee Sen. Al Gore, Missouri Rep. Richard Gephardt, you name it.
If another candidate gets in, those Virginia mass meetings might attract more attention, especially because the Old Dominion will be one of only a handful of Southern states still up for grabs after the March 10 Super Tuesday Southern primary.
Keywords:
POLITICS