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

DATE: MONDAY, January 31, 1994                   TAG: 9402010255
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MORGAN GRIFFITH
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

VA. LOOKS TO GOP TO BRING CHANGE

NOW THAT the bells, whistles and rhetoric of the various campaigns are over, Virginians are watching closely to see if the new Republican governor and an enlarged Republican minority can come through on the promises made in the campaign.

We've asked for the opportunity to govern, and now that the people of the commonwealth have given us the chance our task is twofold:

Show that we will do what is best for Virginia.

Show that there is a difference between the two parties.

Many pundits and critics will say there is no difference between Virginia Republicans and Virginia Democrats. This General Assembly session will definitely show the difference. Whether it is campaign finance reform, getting tough on crime, economic development or the state budget, Republicans and Democrats will have to take a stand.

The beginning of this session was marked with partisan moves to deny Republicans proportional representation on committees. Even though Republicans make up 47 percent of the House, we were allotted only five spots out of 22 on the Appropriations Committee. Not only did the Democrats slight us in representation, but the speaker of the House waited as long as he could to make the assignments. As a freshman legislator who came to Richmond to work, it was frustrating to watch the snail's pace at which things were done. It is this attitude of the majority party that the voters rejected last fall and will do so again.

The Republicans pushed for proportional representation and when we attain majority status, we should hold true to our claims of being a party of reform. Only by setting the example can we prove to the people of the commonwealth that we want what is best for Virginia.

This year's session will consider legislation that will aim at bringing some type of reform to our election process. Issues that were killed last year now have a very good chance of becoming law. Republicans will be pressing for campaign contribution limits, more stringent campaign finance reporting, and putting an end to government officials going into the private sector and lobbying the same agencies they worked for while serving the state.

It is these types of good-government recommendations that will show the difference between Republicans and Democrats. The only reason for the majority party to oppose such measures again is to protect their fragile hold on power.

For years Republicans have pushed for more ``tough on crime'' legislation, only to have the Democrats kill good proposals because they were sponsored by a Republican. One example of this is former Del. Steve Agee's proposal for life in prison without parole for those convicted a third time of a violent offense. Until this year, the Democrats have repeatedly killed this proposal. Now Democrats are sponsoring this legislation and trying to call it their own.

This type of political opportunism is rapidly coming to an end. With a new governor and a new House of Delegates, the priorities and politics of the past four years will undergo a drastic change. The voters of the commonwealth have spoken. They want their government reformed, their money spent wisely, and their communities safe. They are looking to Republicans to lead the charge. The burden of governing now rests on our shoulders.

\ Morgan Griffith of Salem is a freshman Republican in the Virginia House of Delegates.

Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1994

by CNB