Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 7, 1993 TAG: 9310070239
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-5 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: LON WAGNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ROCKY MOUNT LENGTH: Medium
The choir on this occasion is the Smith Mountain Lake Association. The subject: the Lake Gaston pipeline. The target, an easy one: Virginia Beach officials' argument that taking 60 million gallons of water a day out of the Roanoke River basin would not affect water levels at Smith Mountain Lake.
Dudley, the Republican nominee for the House of Delegates from the 9th District, glances at the notes he has scribbled on a small piece of paper, then tears into an Army Corps of Engineers official's earlier statement that the corps' case is "full of facts."
"Nothing personal," Dudley says to the government man, "I kind of got the impression you were full of something - I'm not sure it was facts."
The audience laughs then applauds loudly, and Dudley knows he has scored a point with some potential constituents.
Whatever you call it - shooting straight or grandstanding - this is what Dudley does best.
Wes Naff III, Dudley's Democratic opponent, calls it embarrassing. "You almost wanted to apologize to the group that was there," says Naff, who was also at the meeting but didn't stand to speak.
Dudley, 46, seems ready to take on just about anybody. Listen, for example, to these Dudley attacks:
On Naff: "He's running a Don Beyer-type campaign: Do nothing, be nothing."
On how he would deal with House leader Tom Moss and how Naff would deal with him: "The only difference is when he holds a legislative caucus, he'll tell Wes Naff what to do, and he'll do it; and he'll tell me what to do, and I'll tell him to go to hell."
On whether the retirement of Willard Finney, the Democrat who stepped down to open up the race in the 9th District, will mean a loss of influence for the district: "Willard Finney was in the House of Delegates for 11 years; I don't know how much of an effective loss it will be for us, because I don't think he was an effective legislator."
Dudley, vice president of First Virginia Bank in Rocky Mount, comes to his aggressive posture from two angles: it is his style; and, as the Republican in a district with a history of voting for Democrats, he believes he has to take the offensive.
"You cannot always be the good guy and get things done," Dudley says. "Sometimes, you got to be very strong and forceful. That's got to be one of the major differences between Mr. Naff and myself."
Dudley's top issues parallel Naff's priorities: economic development, which Dudley says he knows a thing or two about from making commercial loans for 20 years; education; and fiscal responsibility.
Like Naff, Dudley knows that past politicians in the district have listed economic development as a top goal and more than a few of their efforts have failed. But he says job creation efforts have to continue over a long period, and community leaders have to continue to push.
"Sometimes it's like you're a cheerleader," Dudley said, "You're running cheers, and sometimes you don't know what kind of effect it's going to have on the ball game, but it might work."
Dudley says his idea of fiscal conservatism differs from Naff's in that Dudley will carry the philosophy forward after he is elected.
"Overall, I think Virginia's Democrats have done an excellent job of campaigning as conservatives; then when they get in office, they act like Democrats," Dudley says.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB