Rogan, Schiff Clash Repeatedly Over Policies : Debate: Assembly candidates split over Proposition 187, and later on gun control and abortion.

State Assemblyman James Rogan (R-Glendale) backed a November ballot measure to deny public services to illegal immigrants and urged the teaching of creationism in schools Wednesday night, and his Democratic opponent for the Assembly seat accused Rogan of allying himself with a “radical right agenda.”

Rogan, first elected in May to fill a vacant Assembly seat, and former federal prosecutor Adam Schiff, the Democratic candidate, clashed repeatedly over policy differences, including an unexpected spat over affirmative action.

The two split immediately over Proposition 187, the ballot measure to deny health, welfare and education services to illegal immigrants that has become the hottest item on the November ballot.

Schiff said he agreed with the proposition’s goals but said it was not the most effective way to curb illegal immigration. It would be better to beef up the Border Patrol and more effectively track foreign visitors who overstay their visas, Schiff said.

While agreeing such steps were important, Rogan said Proposition 187 was essential to a complete attack on illegal immigration.

Rogan challenged Schiff to join him in an effort to dismantle the state’s affirmative action laws. Schiff said he shared Rogan’s concerns on racial preference rules when they become hard and fast quotas, but he refused to categorically denounce such programs.

In their most bitter clash, Schiff accused Rogan of being an uncompromising foe of gun control and of a woman’s right to abortion while saying the assemblyman has received financial support from the Allied Business PAC of Orange County, which he called s “radical right” group.

“How much of their agenda do you share?” Schiff asked.

Rogan countered that Schiff’s real complaint with him and the Allied PAC is the PAC’s commitment to fundamental Christian values. Rogan agreed that he believes creationism should be taught alongside evolution in public schools as the origin of humanity.

“People should be taught both sides,” Rogan aid.

The assemblyman also questioned Schiff’s efforts to paint himself as a moderate Democrat.

Noting that if he is elected, Schiff’s first vote would be to pick a speaker of the state Assembly, Rogan asked whether Schiff would vote for Assemblyman Jim Brulte, the Assembly GOP minority leader, or longtime Assembly Speaker Willie Brown.

“I am not going to vote for anyone who wants to make abortion a crime,” said Schiff, referring to Brulte’s views, but he refused to say whether he would vote for Brown.

Wednesday’s debate was the first time the two men have clashed face to face since Rogan, a former Municipal Court judge in Glendale, was elected four months ago in a special election to fill the seat that GOP incumbent Pat Nolan was forced to leave after pleading guilty to a political corruption charge.

In that May special election, Rogan got 54% of the vote in a field of seven candidates while Schiff finished second with 26%. Rogan’s strong showing surprised most political observers who expected him to finish first but not with a majority of the vote.

In Sacramento, Nolan has proved to be a reliable vote for traditionally conservative causes. For instance, he voted against a measure--opposed by the National Rifle Assn.--to widen a state ban on assault-style weapons, he supported a proposal to permit the paddling of juveniles convicted of graffiti vandalism, and he joined a small group of GOP fiscal conservatives who opposed Gov. Pete Wilson’s 1994 budget bill because it contained a $7-billion deficit.

Democrats have long been only a feeble presence in the 43rd Assembly District.

But a reapportionment plan implemented two years ago that pulled parts of Hollywood into the 43rd District, the Nolan scandal and the 1992 election--in which the Bill Clinton-led Democratic ticket scored well even in Glendale--have raised the hopes of Democratic strategists that their long sojourn in the political wilderness may be over.

Still, voter registration numbers favor the GOP. Republicans account for 41% of the electorate, Democrats 45%. Because GOP party members generally are more likely to vote, the district is still viewed as Republican-leaning.

But Democrats are hopeful Schiff’s record as a highly honored federal prosecutor and his claims that he will seek bipartisan solutions to the state’s problems will stand him in good stead with moderate Republicans concerned about crime but who might be turned off by Rogan’s positions on abortion and gun control.