Valley Swam Against the GOP Tide : Though local voters kept Democrats in office, Republican control of Congress could bring some changes in defense jobs, parkland acquisition, water allocation.

A political earthquake rocked Washington, D.C. on Tuesday night. There was no aftershock in the San Fernando Valley.

Incumbents here kept their seats, by comfortable margins in most cases. Not one lost, either in Congress or the state Legislature. The open seats did not switch parties. Statewide, incumbent members of Congress won 94% of the seats they were running for, the normal percentage.

As the Valley went, so went California--with a vengeance. Statewide, the governor won reelection with 55%. In the Valley, it was 59%. (In 1982, Tom Bradley’s statewide losing margin to George Deukmejian in absolute numbers was almost exactly his losing margin in the Valley.)

When the Valley knows a politician and doesn’t like him, it can hurt when he tries for higher office. Statewide, Kathleen Connell edged Tom McClintock for controller. In the Valley, where McClintock ran for Congress two years ago and where the voters know him, he lost by nearly three points.

In the U. S. Senate race, Dianne Feinstein appears to have narrowly beaten Mike Huffington by 2% of the vote. In the Valley, she doubled her lead to 4%.

This brings us to the hotly contested 24th Congressional District race. While Republicans were being swept into majorities in the House and Senate, Democrat Anthony C. Beilenson prevailed once again. In a smaller version of the U. S. Senate race, Beilenson beat Richard Sybert, who spent a considerable amount of his personal funds in the losing effort. Million-dollar House races are rare, and most of the million in this race was spent by the challenger.

Another candidate who swam against the Republican tide was retiring Assemblyman Terry B. Friedman, making a successful quest for a seat on the Superior Court. His opponent, John Moriarity, has been financially very active in the Republican Party for many years. Again, the candidate with the most money did not win. It was California’s most expensive judicial race this election.

Proposition 187 took 59% statewide. In the Valley it won with 62%. This victory included all geographic areas of the Valley, including the northeast Valley with its many Latino voters.

Valley voters were even more resolute in their opposition to new measures to finance rail transportation. Proposition 181 for new rail systems lost statewide 65% to 35%. In the Valley, the vote was 69% to 31%. Proposition 185 to raise gasoline taxes to fund rail projects lost 81% to 19% statewide. In the Valley, it failed 84% to 16%.

Where did the election leave us? The Republicans in Congress now have the responsibility to govern, not just take potshots. Sens. Feinstein and Boxer and Reps. Beilenson, Berman and Waxman will be relegated to minority status. Rep. Carlos J. Moorhead probably will become chairman of the Energy and Commerce committee. Despite Howard P. (Buck) McKeon’s low seniority, he’s likely to pick up a subcommittee chairmanship, perhaps the surface transportation subcommittee of public works.

Under a Republican Congress, the next two years could witness a reduction in the exodus of the Valley’s defense-related jobs. There could be less money to buy property in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. Moorhead and McKeon are now in positions to see that the Valley gets its fair share of federal programs under their committees’ jurisdiction.

California’s water wars could heat up again with agriculture-oriented Republican legislators having the votes to favor the state’s farmers over urban water users.

Some issues, however, will not change, such as the California congressional delegation’s near unanimous opposition to offshore oil drilling.

*

The last time this type of massive shift occurred in Washington was 1946. In the Congress following that Republican landslide, important and enduring pieces of legislation passed on issues not terribly different from today’s.

In 1947, Congress passed a landmark immigration control measure that reduced the number of aliens allowed legally into the country each year to 400,000. That law was a reaction to a flood of displaced people from Europe. The Taft-Hartley Act passed by the same Congress is still on the books and has limited the power of labor unions for 47 years.

The Constitution was amended by that Congress to limit presidents to two terms. This, of course, was a reaction to Roosevelt’s four trips to the White House. Congressional term limits are today an even larger issue. Six states voted on Tuesday to impose them on their representatives, bringing to 21 the total of states with term limitations.

The Congress of 48 years ago also had a Democrat in the White House. Harry Truman vetoed more than 200 pieces of legislation passed by the Republican Congress. Only 12 of his vetoes were overridden. He then went on to run against the “Do Nothing Congress” in 1948 and upset the favorite, Thomas Dewey.

Perhaps two thoughts sum up the Valley’s vote. The first comes from the new Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich. Six years ago he said: “In every election in American history both parties have their cliches. The party that has the cliches that ring true wins.”

The other thought comes from Shakespeare: “For nothing can seem foul to those that win.” We’ll have to wait and see who’s holding their nose two years from now.