Another Election Rerun: Your Unchallenged Congress

For a variety of reasons, it’s almost impossible to defeat an incumbent member of Congress. To be fair, that’s not all bad. California voters have learned that in recent years as key members of the state’s 45-person House delegation have garnered the political clout that comes with seniority on Capitol Hill.

But it’s not all to the good, either. It makes for a Congress that is perceived by many citizens as unresponsive, aloof and maybe even elitist. It makes for members of Congress who are locked into cozy relationships with the special-interest groups that so generously donate to their campaign coffers.

The public interest lobby Common Cause, for example, reports that the 405 House members seeking reelection this year have raised more than $177 million to run for reelection, while all their challengers have raised less than $15 million. That kind of financial imbalance makes even weak incumbents well-nigh invincible.

Yet despite the fact many incumbents can hold seats in Congress until they die or walk away from them, that hasn’t made them more farsighted or courageous. On the contrary, many members of Congress seemingly become paranoid about losing a nice job with so many perks. They become fearful of angering key interest groups or constituents. The result in Washington is political gridlock like that seen on the federal budget deficit. The result at home is growing voter disaffection and frustration.

But barring a political earthquake like federal term limits, nothing is going to shake up Southern California’s congressional delegation this year. The advantages of incumbency are too great--not just the money and visibility, but districts designed through reapportionment to be as safe as possible.

That is why The Times has decided to be even more selective in its endorsements than in the recent past. For some time now we have not endorsed in every congressional race in Southern California, or even Los Angeles. This year we endorse in only two.

That’s not to say there are not local members of Congress doing a commendable job on Capitol Hill. Indeed, as noted above, the advantages of seniority--and the fact that most in Los Angeles County are Democrats and thus members of the House majority--have put several in key positions where they’ve had an impact on national policy and local issues.

Among them are Anthony C. Beilenson of Beverly Hills, a member of the Select Committee on Intelligence; Edward Roybal of Los Angeles, who chairs the House Select Committee on Aging; Howard Berman of Sherman Oaks, who serves on the Foreign Affairs and Judiciary committees; Mel Levine of Los Angeles, a member of the Interior and Insular Affairs Committee; Julian Dixon of Los Angeles, who chairs the House Ethics Committee; Glenn Anderson of San Pedro, who has brought many federal benefits to the Los Angeles-Long Beach Harbor, and Henry Waxman of Los Angeles, who led the fight for a Clean Air Bill and on key health issues like AIDS treatment and research. A Republican in a similarly important position is Jerry Lewis, of Redlands, ranking minority member on the House Appropriations Committee.

None of these men faces a serious electoral challenge this year, so endorsing them would be pointless. Let it simply be noted that they are valuable lawmakers who by and large are making very positive contributions to the democratic process.

The two local congressional races where we are endorsing are in districts east of Los Angeles.

In San Bernardino and Riverside counties, veteran Rep. George E. Brown Jr., a Democrat, is facing only the latest challenge the Republican party has waged against him. That’s because Brown’s 36th Congressional District is a suburban area that, by most reckonings, should vote Republican. His opponent this year is San Bernardino County Supervisor Robert L. Hammock, a practical and moderate Republican. But Brown is usually reelected because of the service he’s rendered as a member of the House’s Science, Space and Technology Committee. His support for scientific research benefits not only his district but all California. He deserves another term.

The same cannot be said for the incumbent in the San Gabriel Valley’s 30th Congressional District. Democratic Rep. Matthew (Marty) Martinez is an embarrassment whose lack of achievement in Congress has been chronicled by publications as disparate as trendy Spy Magazine and the staid Almanac of American Politics. That’s why we recommend that district voters cast their ballots for Reuben Franco, an energetic young businessman who describes himself as a “Jack Kemp” Republican. Martinez can argue that a political neophyte will wield nowhere near the influence for the 3Oth District that an incumbent does--except that by almost everyone’s account Martinez has done little of any significance since being elected in 1982. The 1990 Almanac tellingly dismisses him as “close to a zero in terms of activity or influence.” The people of the 30th District can’t do much worse than that by electing Franco.

The Congressional Bottom Line: 405 House members seeking reelection this year have raised more than $177 million to campaign. All their challengers together have raised less than $15 million.