Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 2, 1993 TAG: 9301020071
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BONNIE V. WINSTON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
WILDER HINTS HE'LL SNUB TERRY
His previous pledge of party loyalty notwithstanding, Gov. Douglas Wilder says his recent court battle with Attorney General Mary Sue Terry has forced him to re-evaluate whether he will support her run for governor."I said previously that I was supporting the nominee of the party," Wilder acknowledged in an interview this week. "However, that was all prior to me being sued, prior to my authority being questioned and prior to my knowing that the attorney general has more authority . . . than the governor's office."
Wilder was still bristling over a Richmond judge's ruling before Christmas reaffirming Terry's independence from him. The judge said Wilder had no authority to fire Terry as legal representative for state agencies.
Wilder said his stance toward Terry is "on evaluation on a day-to-day basis. . . . Anything I've said previously is inoperative."
A Terry aide said the attorney general "respects the governor and she respects the office of the governor," adding that, "You can respect an individual and disagree with them, and that's what's happened."
In a wide-ranging discussion , Wilder talked about Terry and the 1993 election, his future, President-elect Bill Clinton and Wilder's belief that black voters are being taken for granted. He said:
Black voters in Virginia might "take a hike" rather than vote for Terry.
"We might just have to lose an election so that people will take us [black voters] seriously," Wilder said.
A fledgling black political organization, the Virginia Black Caucus, is a possible new source of power and influence in state politics.
Though he is not a member of the group, Wilder hinted he will be a behind-the-scenes player in the organization. It could provide him with a political base once he leaves office.
"I promise you, it will be well-organized," he said.
Black members of the General Assembly have passively occupied their legislative seats instead of battling and winning on issues pertinent to their black constituents.
He is considering leaving politics and concentrating on making money when his term expires next year.
He would have considered stepping down as governor if Clinton had offered him the Cabinet posts of attorney general, secretary of state, or secretary of defense.
He does not want an ambassadorship because he wouldn't like to be away from the United States on a long-term basis. There had been speculation Wilder was interested in a posting in Africa.
Wilder sought to oust Terry in early December as counsel to the state employees' pension fund. The action came after she released a report highly critical of the Virginia Retirement System's leadership.
Taking aim at both Terry and the ruling, Wilder said jokingly that if the attorney general has so much more power than the governor, "I don't understand why [Terry] would ever want to run for anything other than attorney general."
People forget that "no Democrat has ever won an election without black support," Wilder argued. If Terry doesn't get it, "she's dead."
Terry was unavailable for comment , but an aide, Deborah Love-Bryant, said, "This is certainly not a question of the attorney general not taking someone seriously. It's simply a situation where the attorney general is doing her job."
The governor cautioned that although he campaigned in the black community for U.S. Sen. Charles Robb during the 1981 gubernatorial election, and that former Gov. Gerald Baliles, Terry and Lt. Gov. Don Beyer benefited in 1985 and 1989 from his support, the upcoming election will be different.
"It's going to be difficult" for Terry, Wilder said.
Keywords:
POLITICS