‘Quality of Life’ Is Focus of Democrat Convention

Listen to speeches at the state Democratic Convention this weekend and you will hear a familiar tune.

They are talking about education. And about the environment. And new roads. And more health care.

Government, it seems, is good again.

“[Former Gov.] Pat Brown . . . is credited with building a lot of the infrastructure in our state,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein reminded a luncheon audience of nearly 2,000 delegates Saturday. “He didn’t simply wave a magic pen and create these massive projects. His campaign motto against Richard Nixon in 1962 was ‘Think Big.’ ”

Feinstein suggested that the state’s infrastructure today is inadequate for its projected population of 50 million people by 2025. “These, I would submit to you, are the real questions we must be asking today,” she said.

After years of running campaigns on traditionally Republican issues such as crime and taxes, California Democrats are ever so cautiously optimistic that the political pendulum might be swinging back their way again.

Part of it is their sense that voters are tired of recent Republican campaigns that they consider too harsh. They also believe public concern may be turning to alarm now that California schools rank near the bottom nationally. And on the environment, they say the issue has now evolved from simply defending pretty places to protecting against toxic chemicals.

Their hope is also based on a long-held conventional wisdom. It says that when there is confidence in the economy, there is voter interest in issues known as “quality of life.”

Strategists warn that the political landscape could change significantly by next year’s campaign--especially if the economy sours. At the same time, they speculate that education might play a major role in a statewide campaign for the first time in years.

“Education is clearly the single biggest identified issue in this state,” said David Doak, strategist for Lt. Gov. Gray Davis, the only Democrat who has officially announced his plans for the governor’s race.

Kam Kuwata, who is advising Feinstein as she considers a second bid for governor, agreed.

“It has been 16 years of one party in the governor’s office,” he said. “People are scratching their heads and saying, ‘Shouldn’t our schools be better?’ That will probably be the biggest and most important issue.”

With more than a year remaining before voters go to the polls statewide, the off-year Democratic Convention is much more about speculation and gossip than business.

The only significant purpose for such an early convention is the election of new party officers. Even that suspense was missing this time because former state Sen. Art Torres was unopposed for chairman of the party. To demonstrate unity, delegates elected him Saturday with a voice vote.

The rest of the attention went to the prospective candidates for governor. Almost each one was swarmed by reporters beseeching his or her intentions.

Feinstein repeated her interest in the race and said she hoped to make a decision by this summer. She added, however, that it could be later.

Others who are not as well known might decide sooner.

Former White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta, an ex-California congressman, has indicated he will decide before summer. He spoke to delegates over dinner.

The other gubernatorial prospects are state Controller Kathleen Connell, U.S. Interior Department Deputy Secretary John Garamendi and airline magnate Al Checchi.

Checchi, despite the fact that he is almost entirely unknown in California, is considered a strong contender because he has promised to spend some of his vast personal wealth if he decides to run.

That prospect worried Feinstein, who barely won her 1994 race for the Senate against another self-financed industrialist--Republican Michael Huffington.

“If you have somebody who comes from nowhere, has no record and a lot of money--I’ve been through this before, and it can be very nasty,” she said.

Democrats also highlighted their attention to quality of life issues by selecting the theme “Families First” for their convention.

The theme was supported by a list of 12 policy goals that included universal health care for children, free community college tuition for students with a B average, a freeze on university tuition, more money for land preserves and tax breaks for child care.

“The Republicans talk big about family values, but they are on record as opposing nearly every one of these important initiatives,” Torres said.

Republicans were the target of several complaints by the convention’s Democratic speakers. In particular, they complained that the GOP had dangerously divided the state’s population with its highly controversial campaigns against affirmative action and illegal immigration.

“Rather than attacking our problems, they’ve chosen to attack our people,” Davis said. “They’ve told us someone else is to blame for every problem. Someone, of course, of a different color; or with a different name; or who speaks a different language. And inevitably, they have fostered mistrust, finger-pointing and worse yet, bigotry.”