THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 22, 1996 TAG: 9609210254
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: AT ISSUE: LEADERSHIP
As Virginians look forward to the Nov. 5 election, they're thinking a
lot about issues that are important in their lives. Leadership.
Economic security. Education. Crime. National priorities. Each Sunday,
we will examine these issues and hear what candidates and citizens
have to say about them.
SOURCE: BY WARREN FISKE AND ROBERT LITTLE, STAFF WRITERS
LENGTH: 134 lines
They want Abe Lincoln's reasoning and George Patton's grit.
King Solomon's wisdom, Mother Teresa's humility, Nelson Mandela's conviction, and the kindness and compassion of Jesus Christ.
When Virginians go to the polls Nov. 5, they'll be looking for more than just someone who will vote this way or that, a Virginian-Pilot survey makes clear.
They want leadership. And they'll make some sacrifices to get it.
In a poll of 672 voters this summer, Virginians said they care nearly as much about a candidate's leadership qualities and character as his or her stand on issues like crime, education and the economy.
In interviews last week and in a series of small community meetings across the state, voters rattled off a common list of esteemed leaders: Jefferson, Churchill, FDR, Truman and King. They had a more difficult time identifying the qualities of political greatness. But the upshot was: Give us honesty, forethought and a little backbone, and we'll respect you, even when we disagree.
``It really doesn't matter to me their exact position on this issue or that issue because it's going to evolve over their period in office anyway,'' said Henry Sullivan of Roanoke. ``What I want to know is `can I trust them?' because I sure don't know enough about what they're doing to make a judgment on whether they're right or wrong.''
Or, in the words of Wayne Fulp, a Roanoke County parking attendant, a leader is ``honest, someone you could trust your life with, someone who has your best interest in mind.''
The poll shows that only 23 percent of Virginians think elected officials have a responsibility to always vote the wishes of their constituents. Two-thirds would rather have leaders who work to learn the public's point of view but then vote what their conscience tells them is best for the most.
When asked, hypothetically, whether politicians should close a military base for the good of the nation or keep it open for the good of Virginia and their political hides, nearly 60 percent said shut it down.
``People admire a politician for making a tough decision, even if they disagree with that decision,'' said Bill Wood, head of the Virginia Institute of Political Leadership at the University of Virginia.
``That's how I define leadership - the ability to make a difficult political decision that can injure you politically but is still the right choice.''
Other top qualities Virginians seek in a leader, according to the poll, include an understanding of what real life is for most people, consistency and fairness, and an ability to explain the limitations of government and how issues connect with voters' everyday lives.
Traditionally, leaders surface during times of war and international crisis. For example, the five presidents most commonly cited by scholars for exerting great leadership - Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt - all rallied the nation in times of turmoil.
The nation is at peace now, but the need for strong leadership has not diminished, said former U.S. Rep. G. William Whitehurst, a Democrat from Norfolk. Whitehurst, who served in Congress from 1968 to 1986, said the greatest challenge facing lawmakers is to summon the courage to convince the public that entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare must be cut if the federal deficit is to be significantly reduced.
``The entitlement programs will just destroy us unless Congress and the president get together and tell the public we've got to do something about it,'' he said.
``We're in a damn tough bind with this,'' Whitehurst added. ``Of course, people want good leadership. But they also want their Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid. It's going to be the real test of leadership in the next four years.''
To be successful in elective office, Whitehurst said legislators must master a number of leadership skills that the public often overlooks. Tough-talking ideologues sometimes bedazzle the crowds, but they are rarely effective making laws.
Effective politics is an art of compromise, Whitehurst and others note, and its greatest practitioners are those who keep an open mind and are approachable.
``Compromise is terribly important,'' Whitehurst said. ``The Constitution was a series of compromises.'' Whitehurst recalled of his legislative days: ``I got half a loaf so often that I didn't know what a full loaf looked like.''
The two contestants in this fall's U.S. Senate race - three-term incumbent Republican John W. Warner and Democratic businessman Mark R. Warner - are both described by their colleagues as strong consensus-builders who promote compromise.
John Warner, 69, has steeled his leadership style through three decades of public service that, before his 1978 election to the Senate, included a stint as secretary of the Navy.
His most visible display of leadership came in 1994 when he defied the conservative wing of the state GOP by refusing to support Oliver L. North, the party's nominee for the U.S. Senate. Many Republican leaders said Warner, out of party loyalty, was obligated to back North and accused him of betrayal.
Warner maintained that he was following his conscience. He accused North, the central figure of the Iran-Contra affair in the 1980s, of being dishonest and unfit for office. Many Republicans still blame Warner for North's defeat and sought to deny him the party's nomination this year.
Associates say Warner usually displays a far more subtle form of leadership. The senator rarely locks himself in a position and prides himself on keeping good personal relationships with colleagues from both parties.
``He's someone others go to to work things out because he's a voice of reason and he's able to walk the middle ground to get things done,'' said Peter Loomis, a former press secretary to Warner.
Mark Warner, too, prides himself on being an arbitrator. ``He virtually insists on being the leader in any room that he is in,'' said Jim Murray, one of five managing directors of Warner's telecommunications company. ``He has a unique ability to walk into a room, listen to a description of part of the facts and find some resolution.''
Those skills came to bear when Mark Warner, as chairman of the state Democratic Party in 1994, quietly helped negotiate an end to a long-standing feud between former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder and U.S. Sen. Charles S. Robb. Many believe Wilder's last-minute endorsement of Robb that year helped lead to Robb's narrow re-election to the Senate in 1994.
``Maybe Mark is not the most patient person in the world, but it is very difficult to find any good leaders who are exceedingly patient, I think,'' Murray said. ``His strength is in cutting to the point and making the decisions when they need to be made.'' MEMO: Staff writers Meredith Cohn, Tom Holden and Elizabeth Thiel
contributed to this report.
KEYWORDS: LEADERSHIP ELECTION VIRGINIA U.S.
SENATE RACE VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE VIRGINIA
ISSUE by CNB