THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 12, 1994 TAG: 9410120445
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY WARREN FISKE AND ROBERT LITTLE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
Democratic U.S. Sen. Charles S. Robb on Tuesday mocked Republican Oliver L. North for keeping a low profile on a day when North's criticism of U.S. military capability ignited national debate.
Robb said that a recent string of misstatements and controversial statements by North suggest that his opponent is wilting under the pressure of a hard-fought campaign.
``Maybe a good rest and he'll get his act back together again,'' Robb said Tuesday morning, speaking on the Pat Murphy talk show on WTAR radio. ``But this does tend to point out the need for some degree of reliability when you're in a crisis situation.''
But advisers to North said the candidate was hardly resting Tuesday on the heels of his reported claim Sunday that the U.S. military has been so weakened by defense cuts that it may be incapable of repelling a possible Iraqi assault on Kuwait. North backed off the statement Monday, but still called the U.S. military ``hollow.''
Spokesman Mark Merritt said North spent six hours on the telephone in his office Tuesday soliciting financial donations to his campaign, greeted voters at a Fairfax County shopping mall and attended a political action committee fund-raising dinner sponsored by the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
``It's the height of hypocrisy for Chuck Robb, who took six months off the from the campaign, to say that,'' Merritt said. The spokesman was referring to Robb's limited campaign appearances this summer while the Senate was in session.
Merritt acknowledged, however, that fatigue may be an explanation for North's rocky performance in recent weeks. ``He's just tired,'' Merritt said, noting that North has been campaigning 16 to 18 hours a day for almost a year.
``It's just purely a matter of volume,'' Merritt said. ``When you campaign nonstop, you have the opportunity to make headway, and you have the opportunity to slip up. I don't know of a candidate who hasn't made a mistake.''
In recent weeks, North has fueled debate about his character by issuing a series of controversial statements and then distancing himself from them. In addition to his comments on the military, North has shied away from statements he made in support of public display of the Confederate flag and from his mocking of Robb's military service in the Marines as largely ceremonial.
In each case, North has accused the ``liberal media'' of either misquoting him or distorting the context of his comments.
``A lot of this is an attempt by some members of the media to deliberately misrepresent some of his statements,'' Merritt said. ``Obviously, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Chuck Robb and members of the media are scared that Ollie's going to be elected to the Senate.''
Merritt said North's only real mistake is not ``speaking in a way to the press so that there's no possibility he can be misunderstood every single time.''
But a source close to the campaign said North has been running into trouble when he strays from his central theme: Robb's constant support of Clinton's agenda. He said many Republicans are urging North to avoid side issues and keep his message sharply focused on linking Robb to Clinton.
The gaffes have presented Robb with an opening to question North's ability to tell the truth and get his facts right. MEMO: Staff writers Dale Eisman and David M. Poole contributed to this story.
KEYWORDS: U.S. SENATE RACE VIRGINIA CANDIDATES
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