Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, August 10, 1993 TAG: 9308100092
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: DALE EISMAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
The campaign of Republican George F. Allen went on television with a commercial asserting that "welfare spending is out of control. It costs Virginia taxpayers over $700 million dollars a year."
The ad never mentions Allen's opponent, Democrat Mary Sue Terry, or assesses blame for what Allen sees as overspending on welfare. Allen, who appears in the commercial, goes out of his way to avoid bashing welfare recipients, saying "it's all right to help the folks who really need welfare. But let's protect the taxpayers, too."
Allen promises in the ad to "require able-bodied people on welfare to work for their benefits" and to "give them the job skills they need to be productive in the workforce." The commercial puts no price tag on Allen's job training proposals, however.
Welfare spending is scattered through the state budget, making it difficult to come up with a precise total figure for assistance programs. The Allen camp said its "over $700 million" total was taken from a state government publication - "A Legislator's Guide to Social Services."
That booklet put total spending on "major public assistance programs" at $669.5 million for 1992, the last year for which figures were available. The rest of the total cited by Allen came from administrative costs, said campaign spokesman Jay Timmons.
The new Allen commercial is one of two the Republican has on the air across the state this week. The other, a 60-second biography, also ran on most stations during part of July. Terry is running a biographical commercial as well; it first appeared in June on local cable systems broadcasts of the Cable News Network.
A spot check Monday with TV stations in Hampton Roads, Roanoke, Richmond and Washington, D.C. indicated that the Allen and Terry commercials are running only during and around news programs and talk shows such as "Oprah" and "Today." Neither candidate has bought heavily; Allen, for example is spending about $5,000 this week on Norfolk's WAVY, Channel 10; and about $9,000 on Roanoke's WSLS, Channel 10. Both are NBC affiliates.
Terry, whose campaign has more than $2 million in the bank, is the only candidate now advertising in the Washington area, where TV time is more expensive. A source at one station there estimated her spending in the market at about $50,000 per week, enough to give her good visibility during news and talk shows but little compared to what she'll need for major prime time exposure.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB