Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 24, 1993 TAG: 9310240203
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: F-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The contest between Don Beyer and Mike Farris has produced the sharpest ideological conflict of the campaign.
Beyer came out of nowhere - or so it seemed - to upset former Virginia first lady Eddy Dalton in the waning days of the 1989 campaign. He has spent the four years since focusing on policy rather than politics, perhaps to the detriment of his name recognition. Beyer's main issues have been child abuse, sexual assault, welfare reform and forging economic ties between Northern Virginia and Southwest Virginia, not exactly high-profile issues. This year, Beyer passed up a chance to challenge Terry for the gubernatorial nomination and chose to seek re-election instead.
In Farris, he has run into another candidate who likewise has come out of nowhere, at least as far as Virginia politics is concerned. Farris grew up in Washington state, where he served as a state director of the Moral Majority. In the early 1980s, he moved to Virginia, where he made a name for himself nationally as a constitutional lawyer defending conservative Christian causes. His most famous: The so-called Scopes II trial in Tennessee, where Farris defended a couple who objected to some of the books their children were required to read in school, including the "Wizard of Oz" which they claimed espoused witchcraft.
Farris also founded the Home School Legal Defense Association, which advises parents who want to teach their children at home, and has written a number of books on the subject. In one, he wrote that public schools act like a "godless monstrosity." Farris now says he should have added the qualifier "sometimes."
Democrats cite these as examples of Farris' extremism; he says it simply shows he's a fighter willing to stand up for the rights of individuals. As lieutenant governor, Farris says he would crusade against government waste, debt and hold town meetings around the state to encourage people to get involved in their local schools.
Beyer charges Farris is a "lieutenant" of the Religious Right; Farris counters that Beyer is guilty of religious bigotry against born-again Christians.
Want more information? Here's where to call:
Beyer: (804) 288-1993
Farris: (703) 882-9000
Attorney General
The race for attorney general traditionally attracts the least attention, and this year doesn't break that tradition. Nevertheless, Bill Dolan and Jim Gilmore present a clear contrast, both in style and substance.
Dolan is soft-spoken and cerebral, much like his mentor, former Gov. Gerald Baliles. In fact, Dolan was once introduced as "Jerry Baliles with a sense of humor." By contrast, Gilmore is intense and aggressive. Supporters call him "an Elliot Ness-look-alike," critics call him a "wild-eyed Wyatt Earp kicking open saloon doors, sporting six-shooters and threatening to run the varmints out of town." Actually, that's what his supporters like about him.
The two disagree on a number of issues: Dolan backs a five-day waiting period for buying handguns; Gilmore opposes. Dolan wants to ban semiautomatic assault weapons; Gilmore doesn't. But mostly the two have a fundamental disagreement about the nature of the office they're seeking.
Dolan correctly describes it as the state's law office with few prosecutorial duties; he stresses his background as former president of the state bar makes him well-qualified for the legal duties involved. He also says he would use the post to focus on ways to keep troubled kids from turning to crime. His proposals: Reform the juvenile courts system to make punishment tougher, hire noncommissioned officers leaving the military to serve as juvenile probation officers, and help communities raise money to install metal detectors at schoolhouse doors. He calls that a fool-proof way to keep guns out of schools; Gilmore calls it a "surrender."
Gilmore touts his prosecutorial experience to position himself as a crime-fighter. He says he would use the attorney general's office as a bully pulpit against crime by devoting five days per month to meeting with law enforcement officials, community groups and crime victims to "developed new coordinated anticrime strategies." Like Dolan, Gilmore wants to toughen the juvenile court system. But he also wants to abolish parole. He also says he would set up a regional office somewhere in Southwest Virginia.
Although Dolan is an experienced trial lawyer, Gilmore skewers him for prosecuting only one criminal case. In that case, Dolan was appointed as a special prosecutor to investigate a Norfolk judge accused of forgery. The judge was indicted and convicted, but an appeals court overturned the conviction on a technicality. Gilmore claims Dolan botched the case, and overcharged the state as well. Dolan, billing at his usual rate, submitted a bill of $312,971 for his team of attorneys; the state told him it only paid $50 per hour - in this case, $121,412 - and he accepted. Now Gilmore is demanding to know whether Dolan will retry the case; Dolan hints he will, but says it would be inappropriate to act until after the election. Dolan says the bottom line ought to be that he took on a sitting judge from his own party and got him removed from the bench.
Want more information? Here's where to call:
Dolan: (703) 883-1993
Gilmore: (804) 353-7656
by CNB