Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, July 30, 1994 TAG: 9408200009
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: WYTHEVILLE LENGTH: Medium
Fast had held a news conference on the same Wythe County Courthouse steps one week earlier. In it he had called Boucher untruthful because, he said, Boucher had written letters to gun ownership advocates saying he would support a bill re-emphasizing the rights of people to own guns for self-defense - but then failed to recognize the bill's name when asked about it.
Boucher responded that he knew and supported the substance of the bill but did not know the varied names of all the thousands of bills being considered by Congress.
Bobby Walters, spokesman for the dozen people at Friday's news conference, said that Tonya Metaksa, a Washington lobbyist with the National Rifle Association, also had not recognized the Citizens Self-Defense Act by name when asked about it. Like Boucher, she recognized it when the bill was outlined to her.
``The fact that she had the same reaction as Congressman Boucher shows that Mr. Fast is trying to mislead gun owners,'' said Walters, a Wytheville insurance agent. ``Congressman Boucher has a 100 percent voting record with the National Rifle Association, and the NRA has strongly endorsed his re-election this year.''
Although the group responding to Fast's comments included prominent county Democrats, there also were independents and Republicans, at least one NRA member and one man who was not even a gun owner. ``I'm here because I agree with what he [Walters] had to say,'' Tom Cassell of Rural Retreat said.
Walters said some of the people gathered Friday to take issue with the Republican challenger's comments ``are hunters, some shooters, but we all feel that Mr. Fast has been trying to misuse us and we don't like it.''
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB