DATE: Thursday, October 9, 1997             TAG: 9710090490

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A1   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: DECISION '97 

SOURCE: BY TONY WHARTON, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   85 lines

COALITION IS IN CRITICS' CROSSHAIRS ITS PHONE CALLS IN RESPONSE TO BEYER ADS SPARK NEW ACCUSATIONS OF PARTISAN TIES

In phone calls to thousands of Virginians over the past two days, the Christian Coalition stepped deeper into the governor's race, labeling as ``religious bigotry'' Democrat Donald S. Beyer Jr.'s campaign ads linking Republican candidate James S. Gilmore III to coalition founder Pat Robertson.

``Our founder and chairman, Pat Robertson, has been made the object of a personal and vicious attack in recent television ads,'' says coalition president Don Hodel in the pre-recorded message delivered to coalition supporters and others statewide. ``These ads reek of religious bigotry.''

The phone campaign, which began around 6 p.m. Tuesday, urges Christian conservatives to call Beyer's gubernatorial campaign headquarters and ask him to withdraw the ads. Beyer's campaign said Wednesday afternoon that it had received about 80 calls.

The coalition's phone message doesn't mention Gilmore by name, but it revived accusations that the coalition is engaged in partisan politics on behalf of Republican candidates.

Nonprofit political education groups are not permitted under tax laws to work for a particular candidate.

``This is another back-door method by the Christian Coalition to oppose a candidate and therefore support their own,'' said Barry Lynn, director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which is urging the IRS to strip the coalition of its provisional tax-exempt status.

In Richmond on Wednesday, People For the American Way released a report describing Gilmore's links to the religious right.

The television ads targeted by the coalition started Oct. 1, Beyer's campaign said. The ads prominently feature Robertson's picture, point out that Robertson has given $50,000 to Gilmore and include Robertson's publicized comments recently that the coalition should pressure candidates to promote its policies more aggressively.

Beyer and his supporters say the ads are a legitimate effort to show where Gilmore's support comes from and how he probably would govern. The coalition says the ads are an effort to ``marginalize'' Christian conservatives in the election.

``We're offended by it, as Christians,'' said Arne Owens, a spokesman for the coalition. ``We're viewing this particular tactic by the Beyer campaign as nothing less than religious bigotry.''

Owens would not say how many calls were placed. In the phone bank message, Hodel draws parallels with Beyer's campaign in 1993 for lieutenant governor against Republican Mike Farris, a home-schooling advocate who was strongly supported by Christian conservatives. Beyer won.

``It's not a new tactic for Beyer,'' Owens said. ``He attacked Mike Farris unmercifully.''

Owens also called on Beyer to apologize for the recent ads.

Beyer has been pushing the Gilmore-Robertson connection hard in his appearances and advertising, but campaign spokeswoman Page Boinest said that doesn't make it bigotry. Not all Christians, she said, are conservative.

``Don Beyer is a man of faith, but that doesn't mean he has to support the Robertson agenda,'' Boinest said.

The coalition's call, Boinest said, ``sounds like a politically organized phone bank. There have been questions about the political activity of this group, and this suggests there is a political element.''

That question has been raised several times lately.

On Sept. 13, Robertson addressed coalition leaders in Atlanta in a private session - taped by Americans United - and talked about how the Republicans could capture the White House in 2000. He compared the coalition to powerful political machines of the past, such as Tammany Hall.

``The gall of this is breathtaking,'' Americans United director Lynn said Wednesday. ``They cry religious bigotry while Pat Robertson has been talking about himself in recent weeks as a political boss.

``It is not religious bigotry to link a politician with a figure who has taken very controversial political positions.''

Owens said the phone calls are not an effort to enter the campaign on Gilmore's behalf.

``None of this should be interpreted as an endorsement of any candidate,'' he said. ``As people of faith, we are just outraged that a political campaign would resort to this tactic. We feel duty bound to speak out.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

STAFF/From television

The Christian Coalition is urging Virginians to complain about

gubernatorial campaign ads for Donald S. Beyer Jr. that feature Pat

Robertson. KEYWORDS: ELECTION VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL RACE VIRGINIA

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