Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, December 2, 1993                   TAG: 9312020210
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

CAMPAIGN RHETORIC HEATS UP

So says Al Wilson, who is running for party chairman in a campaign which is becoming increasingly fierce and strident.

Wilson did not mention his opponent, Sam Garrison, by name, but he made it clear Wednesday he believes Garrison is dividing the party.

He said Garrison is attacking Democratic leaders who deserve much of the credit for the party's strength.

Wilson also charged Garrison with confusing voters by trying to mix the race for chairman with the party's decision to hold a primary election to choose City Council candidates in the spring.

At a news conference, he said the two issues are not connected and he hopes Democrats will remember that when they select a new chairman next week. But Garrison disagreed later, saying the chairman's job and the primary are related.

If he had been chairman, Garrison said, he would have consulted more party leaders before the decision was made to hold a primary.

"You can't separate the primary issue from the performance of the chairman," he said.

The Rev. Carl Tinsley, the current chairman, said he consulted some party leaders and potential candidates, but not all.

Garrison voted for a primary when the executive committee acted on the issue, and then opposed it, Wilson said.

Wilson said Garrison is also attacking some Democratic leaders as being "wishy-washy and mealy-mouthed," causing hard feelings within the party.

The party needs new voices, Wilson said, as well as those who have long been active in the party.

"I am one of those new voices, and I not only respect the dedication of the older generation of successful Democrats but also the enthusiasm and new ideas of the young," he said. By creating a Progressive Democratic Coalition, Garrison is dividing the party and implying that those in the party's mainstream are not progressive, Wilson said.

"Our party needs unity, not the formation of fighting factions," he said.

Garrison contends that the progressive coalition wants the party to be inclusive and flourish with diversity. Wilson said the fact that Garrison himself is a vice chairman of the Democratic Committee is evidence that the party is already inclusive.

Keywords:
POLITICS