Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 15, 1994 TAG: 9405170035
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
In a letter last week to Democratic leaders across the state, Goode condemned Robb's womanizing and partying with alleged drug dealers during the 1980s. "We Democrats," wrote the Rocky Mount politician, "need leaders we can be proud of, leaders for our children to emulate."
Darn right. Robb as governor indulged in personal behavior that was - among other things - unseemly, stupid, hypocritical, risky, immoral, beneath the dignity of his office, and weird. Robb later abused his office to try to cover up personal lapses and to perpetuate political feuding. The sum of such behavior, confessed and alleged, is certainly a character issue worth considering in this campaign.
It is not, however, the only one.
In addition to revelations about past personal character, there is the senator's present political character to consider, as demonstrated by votes, proposals and pronouncements in office.
Knowing he would face a struggle for his political life, Robb did not have to endorse allowing gays to serve openly in the military. Yet he did just that, last year, and conspicuously so. In a speech to a gay political organization this past week, he condemned the "fundamental unfairness" of discrimination against homosexuals.
Nor was Robb obliged to propose a 50-cent increase in federal gasoline taxes, in the interests of deficit reduction and energy conservation, or to suggest that higher taxes in general might be needed if Congress proves unwilling to reduce spending. Yet he has said just these things, and prominently.
Such behavior also is revealing.
To be sure, Robb may wish to secure a political base among liberals before a general election that could prove a three-way or four-way race. He may hope to divert attention to issues, away from his personal past. He may depend on the advice of his spouse, Lynda, who has strong political views of her own.
Even so, in a state where gay rights and tax increases are unlikely re-election themes, Robb's principled positions say something about character.
Goode, for his part, opposes military service by gays. His position, says a spokesman for the state senator, "will appeal to mainstream voters." Goode is not about to call for higher taxes, either.
Such stances, like Goode's views on gun control and his early opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment, no doubt reflect the majority opinion of his constituents. But they reveal little about character or conscience.
This stuff, in other words, is complicated, and all the more so because public standards about politicians' personal morals change over time. In an earlier day, Goode's divorce from his first wife could have hindered his political aspirations. It is irrelevant today. Then again, in an earlier day, Robb's past marital indiscretions might never have come to the public's attention, much less become a campaign issue.
Meantime, by virtue of her strong support for protecting children, women's rights and the environment, Richmond lawyer Sylvia Clute is the Democratic candidate with perhaps the best claim to moral-crusader status - and she is giving Robb not much run for his money.
While public standards change, the precedence of expediency before morality remains a constant in politics. In Goode's letter to Democrats, the argument with Robb's past isn't so much that it disqualifies the incumbent for office, as that it renders him unelectable in the fall. Yet electability is hard to predict, given that Republicans may nominate a felon whose convictions were overturned on a technicality.
Citing a CIA document, the Wall Street Journal reported last week that Oliver North, as a White House aide in 1986, as much as bragged to Iranians that Anglican Church envoy Terry Waite was his (North's) agent. In January 1987, Waite was seized in Lebanon and held hostage for four years.
North's followers likely will overlook this revelation, as they have reports of his casual commitment to the truth. No matter the chorus of warnings from respected conservatives, his supporters stand by the man who calls for a return to moral values.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB