CALIFORNIA ELECTIONS ATTORNEY GENERAL : Lungren, Smith Clash Over Representing State on 2 Abortion Issues

In a rare joint appearance Friday, state attorney general candidates Dan Lungren and Arlo Smith clashed over whether, if elected, they would have the duty to represent the state in court on two controversial abortion law issues.

Democrat Smith, a staunch abortion rights activist, said he would refuse to represent the state if the Legislature approved a new law restricting public funding of abortions for the poor. The 11-year San Francisco district attorney also said he would probably not defend a 1987 state law facing court review that would require pregnant minors to obtain parental consent before having abortions.

“Laws that would deprive the woman of the right to choose clearly violate . . . the California Constitution,” said Smith, referring to the right to privacy provision. “The attorney general’s obligation is to protect the Constitution and to protect the public’s rights under that Constitution.”

Republican Lungren, a longtime abortion foe, agreed that both the state Constitution and case law clearly provide the right to abortions. But he added that neither rule out restrictions on teen access or Medi-Cal funding.

“Arlo and I have a big difference here,” said the former five-term congressman. “I mean, I am not a liberal Democrat. I don’t believe because there’s a right declared, that means that the state has an obligation to pay for it.”

The Medi-Cal funding issue has come up frequently during the last decade, with the state Legislature repeatedly banning public funding, Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp defending the laws and the state Supreme Court concluding that they were unconstitutional. Two years ago, Van de Kamp refused to represent the state any longer. No funding restriction law is pending.

As for teen access, Lungren called it constitutionally “defensible,” but Smith said, “I would want to look at all the case law, (but) it probably is unconstitutional.”

The pair proceeded to debate how many public debates they should have at a breakfast session of the Friday Group, an organization of political journalists.

Under the group’s ground rules, TV cameras were excluded from the forum--only the second joint appearance of the two candidates since Smith upset Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner in the June Democratic primary.

Before the primary, in which Lungren ran unopposed, the pair debated four times, in moderator-free, Lincoln-Douglas-style sessions. Days after, Lungren extended an invitation for a similar series of pre-election debates. Smith declined and said Friday his schedule provided limited time to meet Lungren in any type of forum.

Hours later, Smith’s campaign manager, Marc Dann, announced that Smith had reached an agreement to appear with Lungren on two 30-minute question-and-answer news conference programs--on KCBS-TV and on KNBC-TV--that would air Oct. 7, the same day as the first gubernatorial debate.

A Lungren aide expressed displeasure with the format. Dann was pleased. “It’s highly unusual,” he said. “It’s a debate-athon.”