Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, October 4, 1994 TAG: 9410050060
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A1 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: THE NEW YORK TIMES
DATELINE: TYSON'S CORNER LENGTH: Medium
In his first of two appearances Monday night for the Democratic incumbent, who is facing a stern challenge from Oliver North, Clinton tried hard to energize a campaign that at times has seemed moribund against the more dynamic style of North.
``Do not take this lying down,'' Clinton almost screamed in closing a 20-minute speech before a crowd of 500 Robb supporters. ``Do not take this lying down. This is your state. This is your country. This is your children's future. Go take it back.''
Clinton's appearances with Robb were expected to raise more than $500,000, money that the Robb campaign desperately needs to broaden the senator's television reach around the state. North has raised almost $15 million, spending much of that on aggressive commercials that attack Clinton, as well as Robb.
In one, North says: ``Bill Clinton doesn't want me in the Senate. Well, I'll take that as a compliment.''
Before Monday night, the Robb campaign had raised less than $3 million. A Republican running as an independent, Marshall Coleman, has raised less than $1 million.
But although the president's appearances are certain to help Robb's finances, they could pose a major political risk in a race in which North holds a slim lead, according to recent polls. Coleman is a distant third.
Despite Robb's standing in Virginia, winning 71 percent of the vote in his first Senate race in 1988, Virginians find national Democratic candidates far less appealing. Lyndon Johnson, Robb's father-in-law, was the last Democrat to carry the state in a presidential election, in 1964. Clinton took 41 percent in 1992, compared with 45 percent for George Bush.
A statewide poll by Mason-Dixon Political/Media Research early last month found that 64 percent of Virginians rated Clinton's job performance fair or poor, while 36 percent said he was doing a good or excellent job.
``It's an extraordinary gamble in a normal year in Virginia to attach yourself to a national Democrat,'' said Robert D. Holsworth, a professor of political science at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. ``It's even more extraordinary this year, when 50 percent of North's commercials are attacks on Clinton, selling the idea of a `twofer': a vote against Robb is a vote against Clinton.''
Yet, even with Clinton's flagging appeal, Robb has stressed his support for many administration policies such as the deficit plan, the crime bill and the North American Free Trade Agreement.
And so, almost gleefully, has North. Building a strong foundation of support from the conservative right, North often calls Clinton ``the worst president we've ever had.'' Last week in Lynchburg, he described Robb as Clinton's ``steadfast, stalwart, lockstep ally.''
North routinely tells his boosters that Robb has voted with the president ``95 percent of the time.'' North was delighted to learn that Clinton had agreed to campaign with Robb, saying, ``I hope he comes here often.''
``This is Bill Clinton's cynical payback to his buddy Chuck Robb, his lap dog for 95 percent of the votes,'' North said Monday. ``Chuck Robb isn't the senator for the people of Virginia. He's Bill Clinton's senator. Bill Clinton can pick up the phone and say, `Chuck, jump.' And Chuck says, `How high?'''
In fact, Robb has opposed Clinton on several important issues. He did not support the president's original health care proposal, for example. He also favored ending the arms embargo against Bosnia, contrary to the administration's position.
A spokeswoman for Robb, Peggy C. Wilhide, said although he had voted with the president 95 percent of the time through last year, the figure this year was 82 percent.
Holsworth said Robb's strategy made more sense when Douglas Wilder, a Democrat elected as the first black governor in Virginia, was still in the race, running as an independent. Then, Holsworth said, Clinton's endorsement ``could have motivated core Democrats'' to support Robb as the nominee, giving him a better chance of winning a plurality.
But Wilder, Robb's political enemy, withdrew last month, leaving supporters, many of them black, the less attractive choices of voting for Robb, voting for a Republican or - the biggest problem for Virginia Democrats - not voting at all. So far, Wilder has not endorsed Robb.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB