THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 29, 1994 TAG: 9409290493
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DAVID M. POOLE AND MARGARET EDDS, STAFF WRITERS
LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
Standing with a crowd outside a steak house in South Hill, Sharon Coble watched one day last week as a friend emerged from the frenzy with the autograph of Republican U.S. Senate candidate Oliver L. North.
``Hold onto that,'' Coble shouted . ``He might be president one day.''
The thought is shared by many of North's ardent supporters, who view his bid for the Senate seat now held by Democrat Charles S. Robb as the first step in a nationwide crusade that will lead to the White House.
Analysts say North - if time can erase the stain of the Iran-Contra scandal - already has assembled the necessary ingredients for a presidential run: a dedicated nationwide following, a boatload of charisma, boundless energy and an unmatched knack for fundraising.
But North has ruled out running for president during the next 12 years, if he is in the Senate.
``I've made a pledge to the people of Virginia that, if they're willing, I'll be their senator for two terms,'' he told reporters Wednesday. ``I will not use that office as a stepping-stone. My full intention is to retire at age 63 and play with my grandchildren.''
North would not rule out a presidential bid at some future date. ``I don't know what the state of the country will be like in 12 years,'' he said.
There has been talk of North for president since 1987, when the former Marine captivated the nation with his defiant appearance before a congressional panel looking into the Iran-Contra scandal.
North later was convicted of three felony charges for his role in the scheme that tied profits from an arms-for-hostages deal with Iran to support for anti-communist rebels fighting in Nicaragua. A federal appeals court later overturned the convictions on the grounds that North's immunized testimony before the congressional panel may have been used against him in court.
Now, six weeks before Election Day, an unrepentant North has surprised pundits by surging ahead of Robb in the polls.
In some ways, North is a national political figure whose Senate campaign happens to be based in Virginia. His campaign is fueled in large part by more than 100,000 conservatives from around the country who have mailed in campaign contributions that may help North break the all-time congressional record of $16.9 million.
``He really is a national figure,'' Fairfax County GOP chairman Pat Mullins said.
Alan Gottlieb, a gun rights activist from Seattle, said a North win this November could spawn an immediate move to draft Ollie in 1996.
``I could definitely see that happening,'' said Gottlieb, who heads the 650,000-member Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. ``It's a subject of conversation when you meet with gun owners. An awful lot ask the question, `If he's elected, do you think he'd run for president?' ''
``I definitely think you could see a groundswell. He's new on the scene and a lot of people are looking for a fresh face.''
South Carolina state GOP chairman Henry McMaster said he, too, could envision a North groundswell in the next two years. ``He would certainly have a lot of support because because people down here love him.''
But many conservative Republicans say it is too soon to begin thinking of North in presidential terms.
``That's a pretty good Texas stretch,'' said Dick Weinhold, chairman of the Texas Christian Coalition. ``I think Ollie's a great American, but . . . he hasn't served a day in the Senate. I'd like to see him do a good job in the Senate, and then conservatives will take a look.''
Morton Blackwell, a conservative activist from Virginia, said he takes North at his word that, if elected, he would serve two full terms.
``I think it's impossible to look that far ahead,'' Blackwell said. ``There's the matter of winning election in 1994.''
Some political analysts say North, even if he makes it to the Senate, will be too controversial to make it to the White House.
``It will never happen,'' said William Schneider of the American Enterprise Institute. ``People convicted of a felony, even if it's overturned on a technicality, never make it to the presidency.
``He will remain a controversial figure. North will always have about him the image of an extremist, someone who is willing to break or bend the rules to get things done, a quality that many people admire.'' MEMO: Staff writer Warren Fiske contributed to this story.
KEYWORDS: U.S. SENATE RACE VIRGINIA CANDIDATES
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