Hecklers at UCLA Cap a Trying Day for Dogged Zschau

In a trying and frustrating day of campaigning for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Ed Zschau, student hecklers spoiled his attempt to stage a UCLA student rally on Wednesday and Democrats worked to take the sheen off of his “homecoming” to the Silicon Valley electronics company he founded in his living room.

At UCLA, Zschau drew 1,200 students to a lunchtime rally, his biggest youth crowd of the campaign. But 100 or so protesters heckled him relentlessly and forced him to give up attempts to make a speech or answer questions.

The protesting students broke out in chants several times for Zschau’s Democratic opponent, Sen. Alan Cranston. Zschau’s supporters chanted back, “Zschau now.” Every time there was quiet and Zschau attempted to talk, the most persistent protesters outshouted him.

The protesters complained loudly about Zschau’s support for the Nicaraguan rebels known as contras, and about Zschau’s opposition to the toxics initiative on the November ballot, Proposition 65.

But mostly they taunted him--using his grade school nickname, Buzzy, and the name Cranston has tried to pin on him, flip-flopper.

“This is the kind of support Alan Cranston attracts!” Zschau shouted back at one particularly vocal protester. “I feel you are a fitting representative of his.”

Finally, after about 10 minutes, Zschau gave up and left.

A small band of students, including one who spoke exclusively in high-decibel profanities, followed him to his car, seemingly excited to be running Zschau off campus.

Zschau has faced hecklers at campus rallies before. But previously he has been able to use his patience as a former Stanford business school professor to tame the students.

Earlier, Zschau faced a much friendlier crowd at the Silicon Valley computer electronics company he founded, System Industries of Milpitas. This is the company with which Zschau made his wealth and built his high-tech reputation, a company from which he launched his political career--and a company whose successes his Democratic opponents have called into question as the Senate campaign draws to a close.

Zschau was greeted with smiles from 300 System Industries workers and with testimonials from important figures in the high-technology industry.

“What you represent is the vision I have for the future of America,” Zschau said.

System Industries, a manufacturer of computer disk drives and data storage components, was founded by Zschau in 1969. He left the company for politics and a seat in the House of Representatives in 1982 but still owns more than $250,000 worth of its stock. The company now employs about 765 people.

Democrats blind-sided Zschau on Tuesday night with a charge that System Industries had contracts with South African computer distributors in 1985 when Zschau was voting in Congress against federal legislation to impose strong sanctions on that racially segregated country.

Zschau called the charge “slanderous” work by Cranston.

“This guy’s a beaten man using desperation tactics,” Zschau said gamely.

The charge about South Africa came as Zschau was being interviewed on live television by KABC commentator John V. Tunney, himself a former Democratic California senator and a friend of Cranston.

Tunney demanded that Zschau say why he did not disqualify himself from votes on anti-apartheid legislation because he was a stockholder in a company that did business there in 1985 and 1986.

Zschau said he had no knowledge of any such business arrangement. His aides said the question about conflict of interest was merely a ploy to link Zschau and South Africa on the television show.

Tunney said he spoke with the Cranston campaign before making the charge. Cranston said he was not personally aware of the charge until afterward. “I don’t know what was said but . . . I will talk to John and thank him,” Cranston said Wednesday.

Zschau has opposed some of the stronger congressional proposals against South Africa, in particular a bill to require a U.S. corporate pullout. He said he still believes that companies with affirmative action programs should be allowed to do business in the country, but that he supports the recently enacted federal legislation to prohibit firms from making new investments.

Sold to Distributors

The present-day management of System Industries confirmed on Wednesday that they had contracted from 1982 to 1984 with two distributors that did business in South Africa. Company President James K. Dutton said sales in South Africa were small, in the range of $200,000 for computer components.

At no time did System Industries sell directly to South African buyers nor have investments in that country, Dutton said.

More recently, Dutton added, the firm sold some equipment to a distributor and then came to suspect that the merchandise was being relayed to South Africa. “We asked them for a letter certifying that further orders would not be shipped to South Africa and have not heard back,” he said.

The effect of the charge was to keep Zschau on the defensive through the day, one of only a few left in the campaign. This was clear at a Milpitas news conference in which every question asked of him dealt with System Industries and South Africa.

Previous Charge

The issue also detracted from Zschau’s attempt to counter a previous charge about System Industries--that he had been a mediocre manager and that his campaign has been a disappointment to backers in Silicon Valley.

Testimonials to the contrary were all but overlooked on Wednesday. Among those on hand to try, nevertheless, was Intel Corp. founder Robert Noyce, one of the leading names in the electronics industry. “Electing Ed Zschau to the Senate will be the best jobs program California has ever had,” Noyce said.

Four electronics-related trade groups delivered a statement declaring, “We can say unequivocally that no other member of the House or Senate compares to Ed Zschau in his understanding of our issues or his leadership in seeking results.”