Reality Checks on Boxer Incident?

While we Republicans in Orange County would expect The Times’ editorialists to take a dim view of our party’s conservative U.S. Senate nominee, Bruce Herschensohn, we have every right to expect your news reporting to be fair and balanced.

“Boxer O.C. Rally Overpowered by Political Foes (Sept. 16)” fails that test, and miserably so.

Herschensohn’s ultra-liberal Democratic opponent, Barbara Boxer, chose Newport Beach for a “rally” because she could find a handful of pro-abortion activists to be portrayed by a willing press as her “Republicans for Boxer” contingent.

These are the same few single-issue protesters who came out to disrupt the recent appearance by First Lady Barbara Bush.

There was some heckling, but those messages were what Herschensohn’s volunteers were trying to point out by showing up.

I was not demonstrating against Boxer or leading the demonstration or even with them. I had been asked by my friend Bruce Herschensohn to be on hand in case she distorted his views on the issues.

You omitted that. Based on several irate calls to my office, it’s clear that your omission led at least some people to believe I was there with the hecklers.

The Times version of those events is leagues apart from--and leagues lower than--its local competitors.

GILBERT W. FERGUSON

Assemblyman, 70th District