Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 10, 1992 TAG: 9202100056
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWAYNE YANCEY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
MR. ? GOES TO WASHINGTON
Enter the Baliles factorFormer Gov. Gerald Baliles, who's been practically invisible since he left the mansion two years ago, came out of political retirement Saturday to appear in Lynchburg on behalf of his friend, Steve Musselwhite, one of three seeking the Democratic nomination. How much weight will the Baliles endorsement carry? Here's what some Democrats who haven't taken sides in the congressional race say:
\ Ross Hart, Salem party chairman: "Half the lunchboxes in Roanoke don't remember who he is. But among the sentient electorate, it will have some positive impact for Steve. A lot of people . . . are sitting around saying, `Which one of these three guys should I go for?'"
Overall influence, scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest: "Three or four."
\ Steve McGraw, Roanoke County clerk: "I don't think it would carry the kind of weight that a popular governor in office would carry. I think it will be mostly a name recognition thing for Musselwhite, which is what he needs. Of the three, he has the least name recognition."
Overall influence, scale of 1-10: "Six, better than average. If Baliles were still governor, it would be a 10."
Will the apple butter man aim for Washington?
Former Augusta County Del. Emmett Hanger - you remember, the man who peddled jars of apple butter during last fall's General Assembly campaign - says he'll probably decide this week if he will enter the race for the Republican nomination.
The Mount Solon management consultant has been traveling the district, sounding out potential supporters about whether to oppose Roanoke lawyer Bob Goodlatte.
"I think it's still do-able," Hanger said. "I know the perception is it's too late, that Bob has a lock on the party faithful, but there are still a lot of people out there willing to go to work to make it a contest."
One consideration is whether knocking heads with Goodlatte would be disruptive. "I don't want to leave blood all over the 6th District if I have to wrestle the nomination," Hanger says.
. . . or Nashville?
Hanger also has another option to consider - whether to pursue a country-music career.
A guitar picker, Hanger skipped ordinary political ads during his losing fall race for the General Assembly. Instead, he wrote and recorded his own country-music song, "Mountain Valley Proud," that created a buzz on radio stations in Covington and Lexington.
"I went to Nashville the early part of December and sat down with a couple independent record companies to determine if I had enough talent for them to record me or record my song for someone else," Hanger says. "One of the independents there wanted me to record a song. That kind of thing gets your head swimming."
Speaking of heads, the 43-year-old Hanger's may play a role in his decision to run for Congress, but not in the way one might expect. "If your hair turns gray you can still look good for a congressman," he says, "but I'm pushing the limit of getting started as a country-music star."
The Goodlatte machine rolls on
Whatever Hanger decides, the methodical Goodlatte is taking no chances, especially when it comes to tying down support in the Shenandoah Valley. With former Rockingham County Del. Phoebe Orebaugh out of the race, Goodlatte went to Harrisonburg last week and paraded 19 local party activists who are now in his corner. Among them: Orebaugh's former campaign manager, Harrisonburg advertising man Blaine Grim.
Oops!
Sixth District Republicans have been forced to reschedule their convention. They found out their original date, May 2, is illegal because it falls outside the one-month window that state law requires for nominating candidates. This year, it's May 8 to June 9. No word yet on when or where the GOP will meet.
Keywords:
POLITICS