
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, June 25, 1993                   TAG: 9306250411
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

WINNING THE ELECTION ISN'T THE GOAL

THE COMMENTARY pages of the Roanoke Times & World-News have contained critiques of this month's GOP convention in Richmond. Paxton Davis (June 11, "A GOP swing toward lunacy") referred to the event as "lunacy." Political science professor Mark Rozell (June 16, "When Goldwater isn't conservative enough . . . ") likened the nominating convention to "the man who kept pounding his head against the wall because, after a while, it didn't hurt anymore . . . "

In truth, the nomination of ultraconservative Mike Farris for lieutenant governor was nothing short of brilliance. And to think otherwise is downright dangerous.

Can Mike Farris beat incumbent Don Beyer? Probably not. The primary goal of the religious right is not to elect the next lieutenant governor of Virginia. The primary goal, as defined by the Rev. Pat Robertson and the Christian Coalition, is to wrest control of the Republican Party.

For more than four years now, Robertson has publicly sought this control. His Christian Coalition already has substantial control of the Iowa, Washington, California, South Carolina and Texas state GOP parties. Using the Farris campaign as a vehicle for mobilizing and activating legions of religious conservatives, the Christian Coalition is attempting to transform Virginia's GOP into a party of the religious right. In this respect, Mike Farris - or rather, the Christian Coalition - cannot lose.

This same strategy was employed by Robertson during his bid for the presidency. There is a growing body of evidence to support the claim that Robertson was not running to win the Republican nomination in 1988. Instead, he was running to identify and mobilize millions of socially conservative Christians for the powerful grass-roots movement known as the Christian Coalition. Robertson understands that politics are best controlled at the local level, but a charismatic candidate and a well-organized national (or statewide) campaign can be used to garner enormous support at the local levels.

The Farris campaign has already been used to bring in thousands of new people to the Republican Party, almost none of whom, including Farris, have been active in party politics in the past. These social conservatives are not motivated by party loyalty and hold no allegiance toward traditions of the Grand Old Party. They are united behind a common agenda, punctuated by opposition to legal abortion, support for prayer in public schools, intolerance of homosexuality and an end to gun control. Meet the new Republican Party. To brand them as lunatics is to underestimate their zeal and their discipline.

Win or lose in November, the Farris campaign will succeed in helping to redefine the direction and future of the Virginia Republican Party. Moderates and liberals would do well to learn the methods of their madness. DAVID NOVA ROANOKE

by CNB