The Perot-Prop. 13 Parallel: Power to the Fed-Up People

A trip to the public library is always enlightening. Plop yourself down in front of a microfilm machine, thread the film through the spool, and suddenly on the screen it’s the late spring of 1978.

A movement dominated the news 14 years ago in California--one not started or much endorsed by conventional politicians. Rather, it was a “power-to-the-people” seedling that would have died had it been planted inside the halls of power. Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown called it a “rip-off” and “consumer fraud.” A rising young Republican Party star running in that June’s primary for governor also opposed it. His name: Pete Wilson.

The movement was Proposition 13, the landmark initiative that rolled back property taxes and enforced spending limits on local governments.

Which brings us to the unfolding Ross Perot campaign. Certainly, a lot of the smart money is on the Perot effort fizzling. Vice President Dan Quayle said as much last week, and all the President’s men have been lining up lately to take shots at the diminutive Texan.

It may be entertaining to play “Now and Then,” a little game I developed after returning from the library.

Now: Why take a chance on Perot, the major parties are saying. We get the message that you want change, but pick between the “safer” candidates--either Democratic or Republican--to make it happen. Perot is too scary and unpredictable, Bush’s men are saying.

Then: Prop. 13 will have devastating consequences, local and state officials warned the voters. Saying they understood voter sentiment for tax relief, Prop. 13 opponents instead urged support for Prop. 8, also on that June ballot and which represented a more modest and “safer” initiative for property-tax relief.

Now: Perot talk has been burning up talk radio. Perot touts “electronic town meetings” as a future hallmark of his Administration.

Then: Prop 13 got a major boost from talk radio, especially in Southern California and in the Bay Area. Backers said later it was the impetus from talk radio that started the groundswell and that kept the tax-relief buzz alive throughout California’s burgeoning suburban communities.

Now: Perot supporters say repeatedly they’re sick of gridlock in Washington and see him as a can-do guy. Critics say Perot is short on specifics.

Then: Veteran political campaign manager Bill Roberts said: “Prop. 13 has less to do with tax reduction and more with people using it as a vehicle to express their unhappiness. The reason it is not faltering is that they are in a very real sense giving the finger to government.”

Now: Perot’s standard stump speech of late includes a setup line about Establishment Washington accusing him of “buying” the election. You’re right, Perot tells the critics, “I’m buying it for the people because you’ve made it too expensive. They can’t afford it.”

Then: Prop. 13 sponsor Howard Jarvis, who took on messianic status to many Californians, said on the eve of the election: “The people will have a chance to vote for themselves for once. They did that once before and it was called the Boston Tea Party.”

Now: Voter turnout has been puny in recent national elections, and this year’s Democratic primaries drew sparse turnout. Perot needed 135,000 signatures statewide to get on the California presidential ballot; his supporters said they collected 1.4 million in five weeks.

Then: Prop. 13 sponsors had collected 1.2 million petitions. The June primary, with Prop. 13 on the ballot, drew a 70% voter turnout in California, up from 56% for the 1976 elections. Analysts attributed the jump to interest in Prop. 13.

Now: “The nice thing about Ross Perot is that he actually listens,” a middle-aged woman said at the Perot rally last week in Irvine. Also last week in Sacramento, a man told a reporter: “It’s not about liberals; it’s not about conservatives, it’s not about issues. We want someone to represent the people.”

Then: At a post-election victory party, a Prop. 13 supporter told a reporter he had never attended a political celebration before. “It’s the first time I ever felt my presence was of value,” he said. Flush with victory, Jarvis said, however ungrammatically: “The people is going to run the government, and the government is not going to run the people.”

That’s the end of our history slide show. The viewer is free to provide whatever interpretation he or she wants.

My interpretation is that dismissing Perot, especially in California, is done at one’s peril. Yes, California voters in 1978 had a self-serving pocketbook interest in passing Prop. 13, but the record also shows the initiative tapped into deep citizen unrest toward the political establishment.

In short, Prop. 13 empowered people. It made them feel like they were in charge again. The establishment offered voters a cold compress, and they opted for shock treatment.

Have you heard Ross Perot’s stump speech?

Historical footnote: As Election Day neared, support for Prop. 13 grew and grew. Californians passed it by a 64-36 margin.

Dana Parsons’ column appears Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Readers may reach Parsons by writing to him at The Times Orange County Edition, 1375 Sunflower Ave., Costa Mesa, Calif. 92626, or calling (714) 966-7821.