Pubdate: Wed, 02 Aug 2000 Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA) Copyright: 2000 San Francisco Chronicle Contact: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/ Forum: http://www.sfgate.com/conferences/ CAMPAIGN 2000 GOP CONVENTION OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE It would be hard for many Democrats to quarrel with much of what they saw and heard in Monday's opening session of the Republican National Convention. It was all about children and education and equal opportunity, with all of the controversy -- also known as genuine solutions -- artfully airbrushed out of the script. The closest the Republicans came to edginess was House Speaker Dennis Hastert's gentle chiding of Rep. Richard Gephart's, D-Mo., promise to raise taxes if the Democrats regained control of Congress. Hastert also took President Clinton to task for threatening to veto GOP versions of tax-cutting legislation to end the so-called ``marriage penalty,'' but the tone was more of sorrow than of anger. It hardly seemed to matter to the delegates that the themes of the evening appeared at odds with the platform's criticisms of affirmative action and federal support for education. Even Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the resident maverick, managed to give a speech last night with only an oblique reference to the issue -- campaign finance reform - -- he so passionately believes is corrupting our political system to the core. This is what a party does when it wants to win in prosperous times, and the Philadelphia delegates are not about to quarrel, not after eight years of Clinton-Gore rule. To hear what politicians sound like when they act as if they have nothing to lose requires a trip across town to the Shadow Convention being hosted by iconoclastic columnist Arianna Huffington. Gov. Gary Johnson, R-N.M., made a forceful critique of the ``failure of the drug war'' before an audience of several hundred at the University of Pennsylvania. Johnson made the case for legalizing marijuana and reassessing the enormously costly and ultimately futile strategies of interdiction abroad and harsh punishment at home. He admits his challenging of drug-war orthodoxy will effectively end his elective career, but he is devoting the remainder of his second term to try whatever it takes to reduce the crime, death, disease and crammed jails that now prevail. Of course, Johnson will not be allowed anywhere near the podium during prime time at the GOP convention. Neither will Rep. Tom Campbell, the Republican challenger to Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. Campbell is a GOP loyalist with a mind of his own on many issues. He is also enough of a longshot that he is willing to risk a ``soft on drugs'' label when he talks about the absurdity of thinking $1.3 billion of military aid would stop the drug trade in Colombia. Campbell unsuccessfully tried to have the money diverted to rehabilitation programs. ``What you see,'' Campbell said yesterday, ``is most politicians scared to death'' to challenge the war on drugs. The Republican Party is not lacking leaders willing to push bold ideas, notwithstanding the comforting images coming out of Philadelphia. McCain, Johnson and Campbell have had plenty to say -- outside of their own party's convention. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek