Pubdate: Tue, 31 Oct 2000
Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)
Copyright: 2000 San Francisco Chronicle
Contact:  http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/
Forum: http://www.sfgate.com/conferences/

FEINSTEIN FOR U.S. SENATE

It takes a great deal of mental toughness, political savvy and just plain 
hard work to effectively represent a state as large and diverse as California.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., has shown for the past eight years that 
she is more than up to the job.

Feinstein, 67, is running for re-election against Rep. Tom Campbell, R-San 
Jose, a 48-year-old Stanford law professor who has established himself over 
the past decade as one of the most thoughtful and independent members of 
the House.

Californians thus have the luxury of choosing between two very capable and 
experienced leaders whose voting records do not always fall along the 
predictable paths of their respective parties. They are centrists and 
problem solvers.

In this race, the edge goes to Feinstein, the former San Francisco mayor, 
because of her strong record in the Senate. She has shown a willingness to 
tackle difficult issues. For example, she successfully sponsored a 1994 
assault-weapons ban and a desert-protection bill that covered 7 million 
acres. She brokered the agreement to preserve the 7,500-acre Headwaters 
forest in Humboldt County. She has played a major role in developing 
California water policy.

During a recent meeting with The Chronicle Editorial Board, Feinstein said 
her next-term goals would include tightening up gun laws -- including a 
system of licensing -- and finding a way to ease the effects of electricity 
regulation. She said she would insist on fiscal policies that keep the 
country on course toward stabilizing Social Security and Medicare -- and 
retiring the national debt in 12 years. She also said a new National Cancer 
Act was needed to bring fresh and intensified strategies to the fight 
against the disease.

We like her priorities and we like her chances of achieving them.

Campbell, refusing to take PAC money, never really had a chance to get out 
his message of conservatism on government spending and moderation on social 
issues. He brought an especially bold message to one front. He knew he 
would endure ``the cheap shots'' when he dared to suggest -- rightly -- 
that the supply-side-obsessed ``drug war'' has been a failure. He proudly 
defended his vote to shift $1.3 billion from military aid to Colombia to 
domestic treatment programs. Feinstein, locked in a law-and-order mind-set, 
unfairly dismissed Campbell's suggestions for pursuing new treatment 
approaches as aggressively as criminal prosecutions.

The soft-spoken Republican deserves credit for taking a head-on approach to 
the politically perilous ``drug war'' issue, but that alone is not enough 
to overcome the many compelling reasons to re-elect Dianne Feinstein.

California has an outstanding senior U.S. senator, and she is ready to 
apply her energy and considerable skills to six more years of service on 
issues of utmost importance to this state. Californians should re-elect 
Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Nov. 7.
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MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager