GOP Hopefuls for Congress Toe Party Line During Debate

A long-awaited debate of candidates in a hotly contested race to represent the heavily Republican 21st Congressional District led to some lively exchanges, but little variation among the candidates on important national or local issues.

Simi Valley Mayor Elton Gallegly and Tony Hope, an attorney and son of entertainer Bob Hope, found themselves on the defensive Sunday as a third candidate, Thousand Oaks stock broker Tom La Porte, prodded them on issues during the debate, broadcast on a local radio station.

At the summation of the debate, La Porte got more applause from the audience gathered in the smoky Simi Valley bar for the broadcast than the two favorites.

La Porte kept the debate lively by accusing his competitors of skirting the issues and spending large amounts of money to win the June 3 primary.

Along the way, the two leading contenders had to field embarrassing questions about their activities off the campaign trail. Hope, who recently moved back to the district from Washington, has not voted in an election in 10 years. Gallegly has received almost half his campaign money from land developers, with a few of the checks being written during periods when the Simi Valley City Council was voting on the contributors’ developments.

Peppered With Questions

For two hours, the three candidates were peppered with questions from the moderator, radio listeners and the audience about such subjects as President Reagan’s proposed Star Wars space defense program, tax reform, nuclear energy and crime.

As expected, the three conservative Republicans saw eye to eye on many issues, but there were interesting variations.

One of those was the feasibility of continuing to build nuclear power plants after the Chernobyl accident.

Gallegly said he is a staunch supporter of nuclear energy, and suggested that the Soviet Union’s accident should not hinder nuclear energy development any more than the space shuttle disaster should stop space exploration. Nuclear energy, he said, represents the “most cost-effective method of providing energy today.”

Hope said he favored the construction of sodium-based nuclear reactors, which he said are much safer than reactors now in use. La Porte said that, to spur research for alternative energy sources, he favors resurrecting tax incentives that expired last year. On terrorism, Gallegly and Hope said they support President Reagan’s recent air attack on Libya in retaliation for its purported role in the bombing of a West Berlin disco, which killed one American serviceman. But La Porte said it was “naive” to think retaliatory strikes could stop terrorist acts. He suggested that a summit on terrorism be convened with European allies and moderate Arab states.

On the district’s traffic problems, Hope said “almost all of the current traffic problems in Southern California would disappear” if ridership could only be increased from 1.2 people per vehicle to 1.4 people. Hope did not propose how to increase the numbers, which he said he obtained from the California Department of Transportation. Gallegly suggested that rapid transit, apparently referring to the proposed Metro Rail system, would be a financial mistake.

Rapid Transit Favored

“We aren’t going to get citizens of the 21st District out of their automobiles,” said Gallegly, who supports increased spending for highway construction.

La Porte said he favors rapid transit, but only if the debt-riddled federal government does not have to pay for it.

Both Hope and Gallegly, each of whom expects to spend up to $400,000 in the campaign, defended their expenditures by insisting that it is costly to reach voters in the far-flung district stretching from Ojai to Sunland and Tujunga, and including Catalina Island. The congressional seat is being vacated by Rep. Bobbi Fiedler (R-Northridge), who is running for the U. S. Senate.

Gallegly defended his reliance upon development contributions. The mayor said developers have supported him because he has been instrumental in helping to broaden Simi Valley’s economic base. He said he has supported the moratorium against certain types of development until the city’s master plan can be rewritten.

Carpetbagger Charge

Hope, a resident of the district for 30 years, tried to diffuse the carpetbagger charge that has dogged him during the campaign by explaining that he left the San Fernando Valley in 1975 when President Ford appointed him to a commission.

“I would understand if I was moving from Arkansas,” he said.

Hope said he tried to register to vote in Washington, but administrative foul-ups prevented his name from appearing on the rolls.

In the final minutes of the debate, Hope joined La Porte in accusing Gallegly of not possessing a good working knowledge of the nation’s problems. La Porte claimed that Gallegly does not understand the difference between the national debt and the nation’s deficit.

Gallegly, who did not have a chance to respond to the accusations during the debate, said later that his opponents probably turned on him because they think he is the front-runner.