THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 28, 1996 TAG: 9607260021
SECTION: COMMENTARY PAGE: J5 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Opinion
SOURCE: Margaret Edds
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: 81 lines
In the pantheon of Virginia politicians, Randy Forbes is carving out a unique niche for himself. Look it up in the dictionary under N, for ``nice.''
Recently installed as chairman of the fractious Republican Party of Virginia, the Chesapeake attorney and state delegate is trying to usher in an era of good feeling with actions such as:
Since he was installed in late May, there has been no bloodletting at RPV headquarters on Grace Street.
``Not one person has been fired,'' said Forbes, who'd heard the rumors that he'd ax the staff of his controversial predecessor, Pat McSweeney.
``I'm a firm believer that if I set the right leadership style, they'll believe in what I'm doing,'' he added. His mode is earnest confidence.
Old bloodlettings are being healed.
A picture of U.S. Sen. John Warner is back on a party headquarters wall. By some accounts, the old one was last seen with a circle surrounding Warner's head and an X across it.
Those are the same walls, by the way, that have been scrubbed and painted since Forbes took over, and are ready to showcase one of his myriad ideas. Families, any families, that want to send in a photograph can have it mounted on the GOP Family Wall.
The behemoth that is the federal government is, for now, being let lie.
Instead of gearing for another bruising legal battle, a familiar stance in recent years, the state central committee last weekend quietly voted to accept the inevitable and nominate by primary next year.
The grudging decision reflected the pragmatism of Forbes and others now in control of the party. Under a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, party plans have to be precleared by the U.S. Justice Department. The GOP could have tussled with Justice lawyers over convention filing fees and such, but opted - until it's better prepared - to let it be.
When it was time to discuss the party's sorry financial state at that same meeting, Forbes let reporters stay. ``We're going to have an open party,'' insisted Forbes, who is at work whittling down the $240,000 debt he inherited.
``Our tone now is one of not us against anybody, but just `us,'" summed up Forbes.
Scrubbed and pressed, exuding Boy Scout friendliness and God/home/country purism, the 44-year-old politician is set on performing a miracle: bridging the various GOP personality and ideological gaps that have been one of state Democrats' biggest assets.
``It's been an awkward few years,'' acknowledged Gary Waddell, the 9th District GOP chairman and an ally of McSweeney. An ideological purist, McSweeney waged such a bitter war with Gov. George Allen that the governor's staff sometimes acted as a parallel state party.
Still loyal to McSweeney, Waddell also is open to Forbes, who was Allen's handpicked candidate for the post. ``I see Randy as his own man,'' he said. ``He's trying to bend over backward to keep everybody informed.''
Part of his measure, Forbes hopes, will be in proving that it's possible to stick to individual ethics in a political arena that often values a less savory set.
``What I see us needing to do in politics and in society as a whole, perhaps, is to air our differences, fight for our differences, debate our differences, but do so with a type of civility which is not just a facade but which is a real caring for other people, whether they're against us or for us,'' he said.
It is a tall order. Forbes' willingness to critique the behavior of Republicans as well as Democrats boosts his believability.
Reminded that Allen's 1994 challenge to Republicans to ``knock their soft teeth down their whiney throats'' hardly met his standard, Forbes replied: ``I agree. . . . My style is not to say statements like that.''
Over the next few years, Virginians will become increasingly familiar with that style. Forbes' position as minority floor leader in the House of Delegates, plus the party post, will put him among the half-dozen or so most-visible Virginia Republicans.
He has considered a run for attorney general, and may make good on it some day.
As education moves to the forefront of the state's political agenda, and Republicans search for ways to capture Democrats' historic advantage in that area, Forbes may also have much to contribute. In his political campaigns, he has been endorsed by the Chesapeake Education Association and the Virginia Education Association, relatively rare backing for a Republican.
How his wholesome style will play in the Big Leagues and whether it can be sustained are key questions. Look for answers in the dictionary, under N.
Naive? Maybe. Needed? You bet.
by CNB