Five for Congress : Times endorses Dixon, Torres, Harman, Horn and Kim

T raditionally The Times does not endorse in the contests for President, U.S. Senate or governor. It believes readers have more than enough information to form their own views on these races. As for other, lesser-known contests, Times policy is to endorse selectively. Here are five for Congress:

JULIAN C. DIXON (32nd Congressional District): This seven-term congressman has only token opposition in his bid to continue representing parts of Southwest and West Los Angeles. One reason is that his district is heavily Democratic. But another is that he has been hard-working and effective.

Dixon serves on the important House Appropriations Committee and its defense subcommittee, was a key leader in securing Metro Rail funding and spearheaded efforts to get the federal government to help rebuild riot-torn Los Angeles.

ESTEBAN E. TORRES (34th): A former U.S. ambassador to UNESCO and White House aide to President Jimmy Carter, Democrat Torres has represented his San Gabriel Valley district for 10 years.

He has done a lot of work on Capitol Hill to get Superfund money to help small water districts clean up polluted wells and replenish aquifers, an important issue in a region with many small cities that rely on local water supplies.

Although he voted against fast-track consideration for the proposed North American Free Trade Agreement, he has not tried to sabotage the treaty, as have some grandstanding congressional critics of NAFTA, preferring instead to use his diplomatic experience to suggest provisions that could be added to improve the treaty.

JANE HARMAN (36th): Voters in a new coastal district that runs from Venice to San Pedro have a very tough choice to make between two good candidates, attorney Harman, a Democrat, and veteran Los Angeles City Council member Joan Milke Flores, a Republican.

Although Flores is a political moderate with a proven record of being able to work constructively with Democrats (she is one of the few GOP members of the L.A. City Council), we endorse Harman.

A former counsel for the Department of Defense in the Carter Administration, Harman still has ties to the local aerospace industry. They have helped her develop specific strategies for retraining defense workers who, as the Cold War ended, lost highly paid jobs--a key issue in a district that is a center of Los Angeles’ high-tech industry.

STEVE HORN (38th): Another tough call in the Harbor area, Long Beach and Bellflower. There the stepson of retiring (but still very popular) Democratic Rep. Glenn Anderson, Long Beach City Councilman Evan Anderson Braude, is running against moderate Republican Horn, the former president of Cal State Long Beach.

Though Horn earned a reputation for testiness, and even arrogance, during his tenure as a college president, his ideas for campaign finance reform are provocative and specific. Horn honed them during a career as a political science instructor with a special interest--and critical eye--on the inner workings of Congress.

JAY C. KIM (41st): This new district encompasses parts of Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. Kim, a moderate Republican, is the mayor of Diamond Bar. A naturalized citizen, he arrived in the United States from Korea 31 years ago on a student visa and worked his way through USC. He founded his own company, Jaykim Engineers Inc., upon graduation. His first foray into politics was in 1990, when he won a seat on the Diamond Bar City Council.

Kim is fiscally conservative but in general is moderate on social issues. He favors abortion rights, though he objects to government funding of abortions. He supports gay rights, term limits, urban enterprise zones and controls on semiautomatic weapons. He would become the first Korean-American to sit in Congress.