LOCAL ELECTIONS 32ND CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT : Rep. Anderson’s Longevity Becomes Key Issue

Has Rep. Glenn M. Anderson spent too many years in Congress?

The question, being raised by some of Anderson’s colleagues on Capitol Hill, is at the core of Republican Sanford W. Kahn’s campaign to unseat the 11-term San Pedro Democrat in the Nov. 6 election.

Anderson, 77, says he is in his political prime. He cites his rise two years ago to the chairmanship of the House’s powerful Public Works and Transportation Committee and his steady success in steering federal port, road and rail projects to Los Angeles County.

“There are only two ship channels I know of that were ever named after a member of Congress: One is the Sam Houston channel in Texas, and the other is the (Glenn M.) Anderson channel in Los Angeles,” he said. “You can’t knock that.”

But Kahn portrays Anderson as a once-vigorous lawmaker no longer up to his job. He also accuses the congressman of using his power improperly and of losing touch with his district on issues ranging from taxes to term limits. Anderson, he says, embodies the trouble with entrenched incumbents.

“Anderson has grown stale,” said Kahn, 46, a Southern California Gas Co. engineer from Long Beach. “Anybody after 22 years (in office) would grow stale. It’s time for a change.”

Although Anderson draws praise from many of his Washington peers, some who work on his committee say advanced age and a 1988 quadruple bypass heart operation have taken their toll. All those who criticized Anderson declined to be quoted by name, with some expressing concern that they might endanger their projects pending before the public works committee.

Said a Republican member of the panel: “I think this is a classic case of someone who has been in Congress too long.”

But committee member James A. Traficant Jr. (D-Ohio) disagreed: “I think (Anderson) has done a very good job. He gets things done without causing a confrontation. . . . He’s dumb like a fox and he’s forgetful like a fox.”

Anderson and Kahn are staging a rematch in the 32nd Congressional District, which includes San Pedro, Harbor City, Wilmington, Lakewood and parts of Long Beach and Downey. In 1988, the veteran congressman beat Kahn by a margin of more than 2 to 1.

Kahn may be hard-pressed to improve on that performance. Despite having run two years ago, he is still not well known in the district and has failed to raise the large amounts of money needed for an aggressive districtwide campaign.

According to the latest federal election figures, Anderson has collected more than $350,000 since Jan. 1, 1989, and had $177,000 in cash on hand as of Sept. 30, 1990. Kahn, by contrast, collected less than $6,000 in the same period and had only $240 on hand as of Oct. 17.

In some respects, the issues in the 32nd District campaign mirror those in congressional races across the country. Kahn says that on two such issues--tax policy and legislative term limits--Anderson is “out of sync” with his district.

Kahn opposes any type of tax increase to help ease the federal budget deficit, saying Congress should instead freeze spending at fiscal 1990 levels and cut big-ticket programs such as agricultural subsidies.

Anderson supports a federal budget bill approved by Congress on Saturday that would boost taxes by $164 billion over the next five years as part of a $490-billion deficit-reduction program. Noting that wealthy taxpayers would be tapped for much of the new revenue, he says the package is fairer than a government spending freeze would be.

On legislative term limits, Kahn advocates holding House members to five two-year terms. Anderson expresses “serious reservations” about limits, arguing that legislators become more effective the longer they serve.

“After 10 years in office I knew more than when I was elected, and after 15 years I knew more than after 10,” he said. “Anybody who has been (in Congress) a few terms who doesn’t tell you that they’re better than when they got there, then they’re lying to you.”

But the most intensely debated issue in the 32nd District campaign is whether Anderson’s continued service in Congress is a plus or a minus to his constituents and the country.

Kahn says Anderson has lost his effectiveness. He points to a recent Washingtonian magazine poll of Capitol Hill staff members that ranked Anderson as “worst committee chairman” in the House. He also cites grumblings by the committee members themselves.

In interviews with The Times, many lawmakers on the public works committee praised Anderson. But some on the panel--Democrats among them--said he is often unable to hold his own in policy discussions, is overly reliant on his staff and ineffective in advancing the committee’s interests in Congress.

Some on the committee say these concerns could prompt House Democrats to take the unusual step of ousting Anderson from the chairman’s post in December, when they hold their caucus.

“Everyone sees him as a nice person, but simply beyond his abilities in the job of chairman,” said a Democrat on the committee. “The situation is not good for Glenn Anderson, it’s not good for the committee and it’s not good for the country.”

Said a Republican member of the panel: “We love the guy but he’s really failing mentally and it’s very sad. Whatever his staff puts in front of him he does. I just hope that when I get to that point that I have sense enough to know it’s time to retire.”

Anderson and his supporters attribute such talk to political rivalry, not friendly concern.

“I guess you can always find someone who thinks he can do better than me,” Anderson said. “. . . I know I’ve done a pretty good job. And I think I know the problems better than anyone in the committee.”

Anderson says he is in excellent health. He points to a recent series of committee hearings he conducted in 11 states over the past three months to assess the country’s transportation, water and sewage treatment needs.

He acknowledges referring in meetings to note cards prepared by his staff, but contends this does not mean he is overly scripted.

“My job is to know what New York needs, what Pennsylvania needs, what Washington needs, what everybody needs. I have to know the answer on every highway in the country, every highway and every bridge,” he said. “It’s a pretty complex job. . . . I like to have everything at my fingertips.”

“I’m the one who usually makes up the things that are on my note cards,” he added.

Kahn also charges that after years in Washington, Anderson has begun blurring the distinction between appropriate and inappropriate uses of power.

He accuses Anderson of intervening improperly four years ago in the chartering of a national bank whose board chairwoman is Lee Anderson, the congressman’s wife.

Anderson acknowledged last month that he or an aide asked federal regulators about the status of a charter application filed by his wife and other organizers of the Rancho Dominguez Bank of Carson.

But he has denied any impropriety, saying the query was the sort of routine service he provides for many constituents.

“Any congressman’s office must get calls to help on these kinds of things at least every week. . . . We service our people constantly,” Anderson said on Tuesday.

Anderson contends his continued service in Congress is helping both his legislative district and the country. He says he is putting his experience on the public works committee to use in assembling a nationwide program to upgrade roads, bridges and other infrastructure during the 1990s.

And Anderson says seniority is a main reason he has managed to line up congressional support for Los Angeles-area projects, including: the Century Freeway (officially named the Glenn M. Anderson Freeway by the state Legislature), the Metro Rail system and the plan to nearly double Terminal Island’s port facilities by the year 2020.

“I couldn’t have done these kinds of things if I hadn’t been in Congress a while,” Anderson said.

Candidate Party Glenn M. Anderson (inc.) Democrat Sanford W. Kahn Republican

Voter Registration Registered Percent Democrat 131,630 54.7% Republican 85,430 35.5 Independent 18,562 7.7 Minor parties* 5,120 2.1 Total 240,742

* American Independent, Peace and Freedom, Libertarian and miscellaneous

1988 Results Votes Percent Glenn M. Anderson (D) (inc.) 114,666 66.9% Sanford W. Kahn (R) 50,710 29.6 Vikki Murdock (P&F;) 4,032 2.4 Marc F. Denny (L) 1,941 1.1