Dukakis Fires Up the Troops, Fires at the Opposition : Volunteers Told They Can Make the Difference

As Democratic presidential nominee Michael S. Dukakis stepped from the podium Saturday morning in Buena Park, Mary Markins jumped to her feet and thrust both arms in the air. Grinning widely, she hollered: “I’m energized. The Democratic party in Orange County is back!”

While it’s unlikely that many of the county’s Republican officeholders are worried, Saturday’s Democratic pep rally, starring the party’s leading man, was an upbeat display of partisan enthusiasm rarely seen in recent times on the part of Democrats in this GOP-dominated county.

Overflow Crowd

An overflow crowd of more than 1,000 people--most of them precinct and voter registration workers--filled a Buena Park union hall to hear Dukakis and a string of state and local Democratic leaders rail against Republicans and pitch for party unity and service.

The message was clear: Be proud to be a Democrat in Orange County.

“Democrats in this county are feeling good about themselves again, and much of it has do with having a candidate they believe can win the presidency,” said F. Christian (Rick) Thierbach, a Democratic candidate in the 72nd Assembly District who introduced Dukakis on Saturday at the United Food and Commercial Workers union hall. “He’s fired up Democrats, and the enthusiasm is benefiting all of us.”

Democratic strategists say Orange County could determine whether Dukakis wins California, a key state in his drive for the presidency. Party leaders concede they can’t beat Vice President George Bush here, so their aim is to hold down the Republican’s margin of victory while winning elsewhere in the state.

To achieve that goal, Democrats have devised a get-out-the-vote strategy that relies heavily on grass-roots, precinct work.

At more than 30 rallies with volunteers across California on Saturday, state party officials outlined the approach, which includes neighborhood showings of a 20-minute video about Dukakis, his life and positions.

In Buena Park, volunteers, many of whom began lining up outside the union hall before 7 a.m. for the mid-morning rally, were asked to sign pledges to contact and register voters in the final seven weeks before the Nov. 8 election. Each was given 10 large red-white-and-blue Dukakis lawn signs to post in their neighborhoods, and they were encouraged to host “house parties” to show Dukakis’ video, which features commentary by actor Ed Begley Jr. and actress Olympia Dukakis, the candidate’s cousin.

Adopt a Precinct

“We are asking people to adopt a precinct . . . get to know the voters so when it comes time to ask for their vote, it’s a familiar face--not a stranger--at the front door,” said Stephen Hopcraft, a state Democratic strategist.

Dukakis’ Buena Park appearance was his second in Orange County since securing the nomination, and Hopcraft said it underscores the Democrats’ desire to “reawaken” the party locally. “We’re going to do better in Orange County than any other Democrat has done before--just watch,” he said.

To whip up the crowd, a series of Democratic speakers, including U.S. Sen. Alan Cranston of California, attacked the opposition.

Dukakis, however, was the drawing card Saturday. He entered the union hall to a standing ovation as singer Neil Diamond’s anthemlike “America” blared over the public address system. As about 1,000 volunteers inside and hundreds outside listening on loudspeakers clapped to the music, Dukakis took off his suit coat, rolled up his sleeves and said, “So who says Orange County is Republican?”

In an address crafted to rev up what one Democrat called “the party’s ground troops,” Dukakis cautioned volunteers not to “let anybody tell you this campaign is just television. It isn’t, it’s about you. . . . You can make the difference with phone calls and personal contact.”

Behind Dukakis, a large banner read: “Orange County Volunteer Victory Team ’88.”

Igniting Rank and File

His mission was to ignite the rank and file, and Markins, a lifelong Garden Grove Democrat, said Dukakis succeeded.

For the last eight years, Markins said, county Democrats have been “totally demoralized. . . . It’s almost as if being a Democrat was a crime in this county. Today showed everybody that it’s changing.”

Mary Reseter, a Mission Viejo resident who listened to Dukakis outside in the union hall, agreed that some local Democrats have been “frightened of what their neighbors might say if they admitted they were Democrats. But in Dukakis we have somebody who makes people feel good about being card-carrying Democrats again.”

The feeling was apparently mutual for Dukakis, particularly when he delayed his departure long enough to stop and speak to those outside in the union hall parking lot. Looking a bit overwhelmed by the turnout, Dukakis smiled and said, “I guess next time we’ll have to rent the Coliseum.”

Even a small nearby group of protesters, shouting and carrying signs condemning Dukakis’ pro-choice stand on abortion, were unable to spoil the moment.

“This is a great day for Democrats in Orange County,” the two-term Massachusetts governor said before his motorcade pulled away, headed to Long Beach airport for a flight to Washington, where he will spend several days raising funds and preparing for the debates with Bush.