Rep. Riggs Announces Bid for U.S. Senate Seat

Summoning the spirits of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, Rep. Frank Riggs wrapped himself in presidential bunting Monday as he formally launched his bid for the U.S. Senate.

Seizing on the Presidents Day theme, the Windsor Republican cited their “qualities of leadership and strength of character” as examples “every person running for office should emulate.”

“Both men believed in being patriotic citizens first and politicians second,” Riggs told small groups of constituents at opposite ends of his sprawling Northern California district. “It’s called principle over politics, and that’s my promise to you.”

With his formal announcement, Riggs became the third major Republican entry in the contest to oust Democrat Barbara Boxer in November. State Treasurer Matt Fong and Vista businessman Darrell Issa also are seeking the GOP nomination in the June 2 primary.

Riggs virtually ignored his Republican rivals in his kickoff speech in Eureka and a reprise delivered a few hours later at the Chamber of Commerce in Fairfield, on the northeastern outskirts of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Instead, he focused his attack on Boxer, calling the incumbent part of the “semi-permanent Washington establishment . . . of professional politicians that talks down to you while spending your money.”

In contrast, Riggs depicted himself as “a catalyst for change and reform,” citing his role in exposing the 1991-92 House bank scandal (though he neglected to mention his own overdrafts).

Sounding familiar Republican themes, Riggs called for tax cuts, education reform and an end to “judicial activism.” He endorsed steps to improve public safety and “restore fairness and morality in America.”

More specifically, Riggs advocated ending life terms for federal judges and requiring them to stand for periodic reconfirmation, called for an “experimental” flat tax of 17% or 18% that would eliminate such popular staples as the deduction for home mortgage interest, and said taxpayers should be free to invest a portion of their paychecks instead of paying into the Social Security system.

Riggs, 47, has served three terms in Congress, representing one of the most diverse districts in California, both geographically and politically.

Stretching from the Oregon border to the outlying bedroom communities of the Bay Area, the 1st Congressional District encompasses breathtaking natural beauty--redwood forests, awe-inspiring ocean views--as well as the tract homes of suburbia.

Politically, the contrasts are equally stark, ranging from the free-spirited North Coast, with its prosperous marijuana-growing industry, to the conservatism of flag-waving Fairfield, home of Travis Air Force Base.

Not surprisingly, given the contrasts, the district has experienced a considerable degree of turnover. Its congressional seat has changed partisan hands in three of the last four elections. By leaping into the Senate race, Riggs avoided what promised to be another tough reelection fight in November.

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Fittingly, for someone representing a district of such extremes, Riggs has compiled a congressional voting record that varies quite a bit.

He bucked his party’s leadership by voting to raise the minimum wage, protect union workers and, in 1991, to oppose the Gulf War resolution. That decision made Riggs one of just three Republicans to go against the Republican president. On Monday, Riggs told reporters he favored using “limited military force” in the current standoff with Iraq, provided “all diplomatic means” were exhausted.

At the same time, Riggs has been a firm defender of Speaker Newt Gingrich and strongly backed the GOP’s 1994 “contract with America”--positions he emphasized Monday.

A native of Louisville, Ky., Riggs was an Army policeman, a civilian police officer and a sheriff’s deputy before becoming a real estate developer and banker in the early 1980s. He became politically active as a school board member in his hometown of Windsor, in the Sonoma County wine country.

Riggs was elected to Congress in 1990. He was defeated in 1992 after an inauspicious first term in which he reneged on a pledge to forsake a congressional pay raise and stumbled in the House bank scandal. But he won back the seat in 1994 and cruised to reelection in 1996.

Riggs begins his campaign a year behind his rivals. Unlike Fong, he has never held statewide office. Thus, Riggs must start building name identification and political support outside his district virtually from the ground up.

And unlike Issa, Riggs has no vast personal wealth to draw upon. His roughly $150,000 in campaign funds is a pittance compared with the $500,000 to $1 million per week that Issa says he has budgeted just for advertising between now and the June primary.

Making necessity a virtue, Riggs said his campaign would be the sort rarely tried in TV-intensive California: “A lot of retail one-on-one selling. One man, talking and listening to as many voters as possible.”

Acknowledging his underdog status, Riggs noted he has overcome long odds before, most notably by winning--and hanging on to--his congressional seat in a difficult district.

“Don’t sell the voters short. They are often a lot smarter than the pundits,” Riggs said. “Besides, if [I] listened to the pundits, [I] never would have run for Congress back in 1990.”