ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 3, 1996 TAG: 9603050010
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LEXINGTON
SOURCE: MIKE HUDSON STAFF WRITER
NEWT GINGRICH electrified crowds in Lexington and Roanoke on Saturday with his conservative vision.
House Speaker Newt Gingrich drew deafening cheers from students at Washington and Lee University on Saturday as he attacked "the Washington power structure" and - in a notably gentle, indirect way - President Clinton.
"America is a great country filled with good people," Gingrich said at W&L's 21st Mock Presidential Convention. "We can create a tremendous future. structure that just doesn't get it.
"Some of you may have thought I was going to suggest that Bill Clinton is the obstacle. But he is not the obstacle; he's a symptom. If you replace Bill Clinton tomorrow morning with another liberal, they would veto the same bills, appoint the same judges, you'd have the same things going on."
Gingrich, a Georgian who engineered the GOP's 1994 takeover of Congress, said he wants a flat tax that would lower taxes both for struggling middle-class families and for "people who create jobs" such as Microsoft computer magnate Bill Gates.
Gingrich said the nation must reform its welfare and education systems, get tough on crime and get rid of bureaucrats in Washington.
"The Internal Revenue Service, with a $10 billion budget and 100,000 employees, is twice the size of the Central Intelligence Agency and five times the size of the Federal Bureau of Investigation," he said. "We can't stop illegal immigration at the border and we can't stop drug dealers, but we sure can audit your return. Maybe the government has misplaced its resources on the wrong things."
While the W&L students cheered Gingrich, about 150 Rockbridge County Democrats gathered at the nearby Lexington Fire Department for a "Say No to Newt" rally.
Amy DeHart, chairwoman of the local Democratic Party, said Gingrich "does not speak for the majority of people" in the county. She said the Republicans' flat tax idea "will not help the people of Rockbridge County. I think it will continue to help the corporations and the wealthy that they represent."
"We don't have professional speechmakers," DeHart said as a biology teacher, nursing coordinator and others addressed the Democrats. "We have dedicated and talented citizens who are working to make the county a better place to live."
Gingrich started his day at a $50-a-plate breakfast at the Hotel Roanoke to help raise money for Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Roanoke.
The event drew about 850 people, and Goodlatte said he believed the turnout made it "the largest fund-raiser in the history of Roanoke." A Goodlatte aide said the breakfast should take in $85,000 to $90,000 for Goodlatte's re-election campaign. Along with sausage and eggs, some Republicans paid extra for a private reception with Gingrich.
So far, Democrats haven't come up with a candidate to oppose Goodlatte's bid for a third term, although party leaders lately have been trying to persuade former state Sen. Granger Macfarlane of Roanoke to give up his planned bid for lieutenant governor in 1997 to run for Congress this fall instead.
Gingrich used the event to praise Goodlatte for his sponsorship of a bill that would make it easier for the federal government to crack down on counterfeit merchandise. China, he said, openly has factories duplicating copyrighted American goods. "The Clinton administration has been very weak in enforcing our trade policies, but Bob has been a leader," Gingrich said.
The speaker also predicted the race for the Republican presidential nomination should be wrapped up by the end of March. "If Senator Dole wins [Saturday in South Carolina] and goes on to win in Puerto Rico [today], it'll clearly establish him as the front-runner again."
As in Lexington, Gingrich's Roanoke appearance drew critics. About 16 people stood outside the hotel and waved signs needling the GOP leader. "When Can I Balance My Budget?'' one said.
Beverly Warren, with Local 1739 of the American Federation of Government Employees, helped organize the turnout of government workers to protest Gingrich's role in this winter's federal government shutdown.
"We need to get these people out and get some responsible people in," she said. "We remember all this. These are decisions that affect our lives. When it comes time to vote, we're going to remember in November."
Staff writer Dwayne Yancey contributed to this report.
LENGTH: Medium: 87 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. Eric Brady. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich givesby CNBthe keynote address at Washington and Lee University's Mock Election
on Saturday. 2. Wayne Deel Members of the American Federation of
Government Workers carried signs in a quiet protest of House Speaker
Newt Gingrich outside the Hotel Roanoke on Saturday. color.