Virginia’s Wilder Offers New Apology

For the second time in less than a week, Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder issued an apology Sunday for public comments he had made, and this time he acknowledged that such incidents could damage his credibility as a potential candidate for President.

Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Wilder conceded that reporters had been misled by his repeated statements that he had nothing to do with a short-lived state police investigation that involved his political rival, Sen. Charles S. Robb (D-Va.).

On Wednesday, Wilder also apologized for an interview in which he questioned “how much allegiance” Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas might have to the Pope because Thomas is a Roman Catholic and is expected to be a foe of abortion.

Wilder said reporters “misunderstood” his statements about the Robb investigation because they assumed state police had been ordered to investigate Robb. Instead, Wilder said, the probe examined claims by Robb critics that they had been threatened. The senator is the subject of renewed reports that as governor he attended parties where drugs were used.

“I have never participated in any investigation of Chuck Robb, period, nor has the state police under my direction,” Wilder said.

But “to the extent that (reporters) were misled, I do it now: I apologize to any who have interpreted those remarks to mean that I did (not) know that the state police were looking into threats and intimidation, period--but never looking into Chuck Robb.”