4 Incumbents Heavily Favored in Congressional Races

In races spiced up by the presence of two followers of radical economist-politician Lyndon LaRouche, 14 candidates are seeking to unseat four heavily favored incumbents in congressional campaigns in San Diego County.

Although most of the challengers profess optimism about their prospects for an upset, the four contests appear to be races more in name than in reality. Each of the four incumbents--three Republicans and one Democrat--was reelected by a margin of at least 29% in 1984, and none has primary opposition this year.

In addition, all four congressmen represent districts in which their respective parties hold major voter registration edges, have large campaign treasuries in reserve that dwarf the fund-raising efforts of their opponents and acknowledge that perhaps the major obstacle facing them in their reelection bids is simply protecting against overconfidence.

One of the more realistic assessments about the likely outcome of the races is that of Dick Rider, a stockbroker running against Rep. Bill Lowery (R-San Diego) in the 41st Congressional District.

“If any of these incumbents lose, it would be more a matter of them self-destructing than the result of anything we might do,” said Rider, a Libertarian. “Most of the races in California are boring, because gerrymandering has created ‘safe’ districts that make it very difficult to challenge an incumbent. You practically have to hope for a miracle.”

Local Democratic Party leaders, meanwhile, concede that one of their major concerns in the June 3 primary is the candidacy of LaRouche supporters Alex Maruniak and George Hollis in the 41st and 45th districts, respectively.

LaRouche and groups connected to him advocate the screening of all Americans to detect AIDS and the quarantining of those with the disease until a cure is found; support repeal of the Gramm-Rudman budget control measure, and favor a strong national defense, including President Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative, the so-called “Star Wars” program.

Still smarting from lingering embarrassment over a 1980 congressional race in which a Ku Klux Klan leader won the 43rd District Democratic primary, local Democrats cite the recent victories of LaRouche candidates in two statewide primaries in Illinois as reason enough to take Maruniak and Hollis seriously, although neither has waged a major campaign.

“We don’t want what happened in Illinois to happen in San Diego,” said county Democratic Chairman Tom La Vaut. “These are the kind of fringe elements we don’t want representing the Democratic Party, so we’re not going to underestimate them.”

While Hollis has all but disappeared since entering the race, Maruniak has debated his opponent for the Democratic nomination in the 41st District, psychiatrist Dan Kripke, before several Democratic groups. Contrary to La Vaut’s preference that Democratic clubs not invite the LaRouche candidates “because we don’t want to give these people a platform,” Kripke has eagerly pursued face-to-face encounters with Maruniak.

“The lesson of Illinois is that we cannot ignore the LaRouche candidates or any extremists,” Kripke said. “That just plays into their hands, because they benefit from public ignorance. We have to meet their challenge head on and let the voters know who they are and what they stand for.”

Maruniak, meanwhile, describes himself as “a Franklin Roosevelt-type Democrat” who aligned himself with LaRouche because the Democratic Party had “abdicated its position of leadership and was going to hell in a hand basket.”

“All this criticism about LaRouche . . . is just a big slander by banks and newspapers and the powers that be in the East,” Maruniak said. “The LaRouche group is the only one I see that has a plan for putting America back on the map as an economic power. The Democratic Party could help itself a lot by listening to some of these ideas.”

La Vaut, though, argues that a primary victory by either of the LaRouche candidates would be “a complete disaster” that would “set us back for years.”

“If we as Democrats are not strong enough to defeat right-wing extremists in our own primaries, then how can we expect to ever become a viable force in San Diego politics?” La Vaut asked.

While Democrats worry about the LaRouche challenge, local Republicans are paying particular attention to the 44th District GOP primary, where three candidates, including former San Diego City Councilman Bill Mitchell, are vying for the right to face Rep. Jim Bates (D-San Diego). Although the district is heavily Democratic, the race could mark the first time that Bates has had more than nominal opposition--a factor that local GOP leaders contend will test his grip on the district.

Following is an overview of the four local congressional contests:

41st District

Maruniak, a 60-year-old aerospace engineer, says that his involvement with the LaRouche movement has proven to be both an asset and a liability in the district, which stretches from Point Loma to Del Mar and includes most of northern San Diego.

“It causes people to pay a little more attention to you, but it’s also a negative because some of them automatically criticize you before even listening to what you have to say,” said Maruniak, who has run unsuccessfully for the San Diego City Council.

The LaRouche position on mandatory AIDS testing and quarantining of those with the disease, Maruniak says, “has been distorted from a safety issue into a civil rights issue.” Maruniak also disputes current medical evidence indicating that AIDS is transmitted primarily through sexual contact, saying that doctors “still aren’t really sure if AIDS is a contagious, airborne disease.”

“AIDS is more dangerous than nuclear war, because a nuclear war leaves at least some survivors,” he said. “A quarantine is necessary to protect the rest of society, but it also helps the person with AIDS by protecting him against colds and illnesses that could kill him.”

In his public appearances, Maruniak also argues that the Strategic Defense Initiative is needed “to keep our butts from being fried in a nuclear war and as an economic driver to bring us out of the depression that we’re in.”

The heavy favorite in the Democratic primary, however, is Kripke, a party activist who hopes to handily dispose of Maruniak--”a man with dangerous views whom I disagree with on just about everything”--and then shift the focus of his campaign to criticism of Lowery’s “inept, inadequate and embarrassing record.”

An unsuccessful 1982 state Senate candidate, Kripke, a 44-year-old professor of psychiatry at UC San Diego and director of the Sleep Disorders Clinic at the Veterans Administration hospital in La Jolla, characterizes Lowery as “a budget buster whose votes have been anti-women, anti-environment and anti-veteran.”

In support of that sweeping allegation, Kripke cites Lowery’s votes against the equal rights amendment, to cut funding for the Environmental Protection Agency and the Veterans Administration, and for dozens of measures that would have increased the federal deficit.

Lowery, a 39-year-old former San Diego City Councilman seeking his fourth term in Congress, dismisses Kripke’s remarks as “a total distortion that raises questions about whether my opponent even understands these issues.” In response to Kripke’s attack on his voting record, Lowery:

- Explained that he once voted against the ERA, a measure he co-sponsored, because the House’s Democratic leadership “played political games” by trying to force a vote on the proposed constitutional amendment after only 30 minutes’ debate.

- Pointed out that funds for the Veterans Administration have been incorporated in “excessively high” appropriations bills for various federal agencies. “I have no quarrel with the VA, but the legislative process sometimes forces you to vote against some good programs to get rid of some bad ones,” he said.

- Cited his long-running efforts to ban offshore oil drilling off San Diego’s coastline as a demonstration of his commitment to environmental protection.

- Described Kripke’s repeated use of the phrase “Large-Deficit Lowery” as “a joke,” noting that several groups have consistently ranked him among the most fiscally conservative members of Congress.

Kripke contends that he is intimidated neither by the fact that Lowery was reelected two years ago by a 63%-34% margin against a relatively strong Democratic opponent--University of San Diego law professor Bob Simmons--nor by Republicans’ 11% registration advantage in the district. Similarly, Kripke claims to be unconcerned over the likelihood that Lowery, who has raised about $250,000 to date, probably will outspend him by about a 3-to-1 margin in the race.

However, Rider, a 40-year-old Libertarian who faces no primary opposition, concedes that those factors leave him with little realistic hope for victory.

“About the only way Lowery is going to lose is if he does something scandalous, something really stupid,” said Rider, who, like Kripke, ran unsuccessfully against state Sen. Bill Craven (R-Oceanside) in 1982. “But if that happens, I think I have just as good a chance as Dr. Kripke. But I’d have to say that neither of our chances is very good.”

43rd District

There is no contested primary in the 43rd District, in which one Democrat and one Libertarian are waging uphill battles against Rep. Ron Packard (R-Carlsbad) in the solidly Republican district.

Libertarian Phyllis Avery, a 50-year-old political researcher from Oceanside, received only 3% of the vote against Packard in 1984, and concedes that she is running again this year not because she hopes to win, but simply to promote her party’s goal of drastically reducing governmental regulations.

However, Democrat Joseph Chirra, a 39-year-old Vista lawyer in his first political race, says he believes that he is “going to create a political upset every bit as big” as Packard’s historic 1982 victory, in which the former Carlsbad dentist became only the fourth person to win a congressional write-in campaign.

Although Republicans outnumber Democrats by an almost 2-to-1 margin in the 43rd District, which covers northern San Diego County and part of southwestern Orange County, Chirra argues that many of the GOP voters are moderates who “would be open to my message if I can get it to them.” That message, Chirra added, includes charges that Packard has not fought aggressively enough to protect the North County coastline from offshore oil drilling and that the congressman is a “rubber stamp for exorbitant” Reagan Administration programs, particularly defense programs.

“If nothing else, I’m going to try to make this race interesting, because I think every public official should have serious opposition and be held accountable,” said Chirra, who hopes to raise about $75,000 by November, less than Packard already has in his treasury.

The 55-year-old Packard, reelected by a 3-to-1 margin in 1984, acknowledges that his bid for a third term should be an easy one, but adds, “Duncan Hunter proved to Lionel Van Deerlin that you never take any race lightly”--a reference to Hunter’s 1980 upset of the nine-term incumbent.

Packard says his major accomplishments include helping to secure federal funding to address the Tijuana sewage problem that has fouled San Diego’s beaches, and working for yet-to-be-approved funds to widen California 78 in North County.

Packard added that, while he would prefer to keep the North County coastline free of offshore oil drilling operations, that goal “is almost an unrealistic expectation” in the wake of Congress’ failure to renew a moratorium on drilling off the California coast.

“To be quite honest, we’re in the position of trying to exercise damage control by trying to couch whatever happens, in terms of time and location, to make it as satisfactory to the local governments as possible,” Packard said.

44th District

After two elections in which he has faced only token opposition in a heavily minority district carved out by reapportionment officials in such a way as to be “safe” for a Democrat, Rep. Jim Bates could face his first “name” opponent this November. Most local political observers, however, doubt that that possibility will change the outcome in the 44th District, which includes downtown and southern San Diego, Lemon Grove, Chula Vista and National City.

However, three Republicans--former San Diego City Councilman Mitchell, former San Diego Chargers linebacker Mike London and accountant Gene Pierson--are competing for the dubious privilege of running in a district with a 56%-32% Democratic voter registration edge. Bates received 70% of the vote two years ago. Libertarian Dennis Thompson and Peace and Freedom Party candidate Shirley Isaacson, both of whom are unopposed in next month’s primary, also are entered in the race.

Mitchell, defeated in his campaign for a third council term last November, says that he has been “startled and very pleased to see how high” his name recognition is, even in areas of the district that fall outside the city and where he has never campaigned before.

“That says to me that London and Pierson couldn’t catch up to me even if they spend $150,000,” said Mitchell, who moved into the district when he announced his candidacy, even though congressional candidates are not required to live in the district in which they run.

“Anyway, they aren’t the real enemy--Bates is,” Mitchell said. “They believe in many of the same things I do. Bates has plenty of holes in his armor, and the question is who can beat him--an experienced public official or a total unknown.”

Not surprisingly, Pierson and London answer that question differently than Mitchell.

“The way I look at it is that Mr. Mitchell was fired by his constituents last year, so now he’s out looking for a new job . . . with a black mark on his resume,” said Pierson, 55. “He’s formidable because of his name, but I think he’s beatable.”

The central issue in Pierson’s campaign is a proposed states’ rights measure that, among other points, stipulates that the federal government would no longer collect personal income taxes. Instead, individuals would pay taxes only to the states, which then would forward money to Washington according to a formula based on population, percentage of federal land within their borders, and the gross state product.

“I hope people don’t think I’m a kook, but I think it’s time we try something new without just following the same old road map,” Pierson said.

London, a 41-year-old lawyer who played for the Chargers in the late 1960s, says that he hopes that his 14 years of legal practice in the district will help him offset Mitchell’s name recognition advantages.

Like Mitchell and Pierson, London faults Bates for his much-publicized criticism of the Navy’s procurement policies.

“Some of the procedures may have been sloppy and needed to be tightened up, but I think he handled it in the wrong way,” London said. “Don’t forget that the Navy is one of our largest employers. We need to reestablish a relationship with the Navy, and I don’t think Bates is the one to do that.”

Libertarian candidate Thompson is president of Epicom Inc., a local computer time-sharing service. Describing himself as “a pragmatist with ideals,” Thompson espouses the Libertarians’ guiding tenet that the federal government is “too large, too inefficient and too intrusive into our lives.”

Isaacson, a Los Angeles resident, could not be reached for comment.

Bates, meanwhile, argues that his opponents “are really barking up the wrong tree” by focusing on the Navy procurement issue.

“A few Navy people may be angry over that, but I think most people agree that the Navy’s efficiency improved because of what I did,” Bates said. “My opponents must be awfully weak on issues if they have to take on one of the best things I’ve done.”

Sounding the same cautionary notes cited by the three other heavily favored San Diego congressmen, the 44-year-old Bates, a former San Diego County supervisor and city councilman noted for his aggressive, sometimes abrasive style, said that he will not “let my guard down” this year. However, after a short pause, he added: “But I’m not expecting any career changes in the near future.”

45th District

A not-so-funny thing happened to three Democrats on their way to the voter registrar’s office in their bid to challenge Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Coronado) in the 45th District.

Only days before the March 7 filing deadline, it appeared that no Democrat might enter the June primary, creating the potential for a “free ride” into the November runoff for any last-minute entry. That possibility appeared so attractive that, by the end of March 7, three people--LaRouche advocate Hollis, Dr. Hewitt Ryan and Michael Seeto, a former federal fire protection inspector--entered the Democratic primary.

“I thought I was going to be alone--it got pretty confusing,” said Seeto, who initially had planned to run against Lowery in the 41st District but was persuaded by Bates to run in the 45th District instead after a Democrat who had been expected to enter that race withdrew.

Similarly, the 57-year-old Ryan said that he entered the primary “because I didn’t think Hunter should go unchallenged, and I thought he would unless I ran.”

A Point Loma resident who moved to San Diego in 1972 from Denver, where he was active in Democratic politics, Ryan is the brother of the late William Ryan, a congressman from New York for 11 years until his death in 1972.

Ryan criticizes Hunter as “a me-too Republican who has gone along with Reagan’s plan to dismantle this country’s social and civil rights programs.” He also plans to emphasize the Reagan Administration’s “wrongheaded and dangerous” foreign policy--in particular, what he characterizes as “the fomenting of civil war in Central America.”

Seeto, 33, is a San Diego native whose father moved to the United States nearly 50 years ago. According to his political consultant, Nick Johnson, Seeto is the only Chinese-American running for federal office in the United States--a factor that he plans to use for publicity purposes via a trip to China if he wins the primary.

“Let’s face it, when you’re running against an incumbent, you need to go after all the press you can get,” Johnson said. Several Chinese-American papers in California and elsewhere already have written numerous stories about Seeto’s campaign, Johnson added.

Seeto, who plans to spend about $8,000 on radio advertising and yard signs, characterizes himself as “an average person out to help the little guy.”

LaRouche candidate Hollis, meanwhile, has not been seen on the campaign trail since he filed his candidacy papers 2 1/2 months ago; he could not be reached for comment. An optical engineer, Hollis has run for various local offices, including mayor, and worries local Democratic leaders simply because his name is on the ballot.

“Politics is a funny game,” Democratic Chairman La Vaut said. “Sometimes people just pick out a name because they like the way it sounds. We don’t want that to happen here.”

Libertarian Lee Schwartz, who faces no primary opposition, says that he probably will not begin active campaigning until this summer.

“I really don’t have any major criticism of Hunter at this time,” said Schwartz, a 32-year-old engineering consultant. “But I’m sure once I start looking, there will be no shortage of issues to criticize his record.”

Mindful that he gained his seat through an upset, Hunter returns to San Diego on most weekends in an effort to solidify his hold on the district, which includes most of southeastern San Diego County and all of Imperial County.

“As a guy who was once characterized as a sacrificial lamb himself, I always run hard and take nothing for granted,” said Hunter, reelected by a 75%-23% margin in 1984. However, Republicans hold about a 12% voter registration advantage in the district and Hunter already has raised more than $200,000, compelling evidence of the tough odds facing his Democratic opponent.