Contrasting Styles

One way to compare Rep. Loretta Sanchez and her 46th Congressional District election challenger, former Rep. Robert K. Dornan, is to look at their records on Capitol Hill.

During nine terms in Congress, the conservative Republican Dornan was known more for his rapid-fire mouth than for his leadership writing legislation. He fought in support for prisoners of war and against abortion and gay rights.

In her first term, Sanchez focused more on local issues. She is praised by community leaders for winning federal funding for a variety of programs in the central county district. She got one piece of legislation passed and spent more time at home talking with voters than any predecessor.

Here are summaries of Dornan’s and Sanchez’s service in Congress.

For more detailed analysis of their records, see Page A1.

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Dornan by the Numbers

Former Rep. Robert K. Dornan’s ratings from various interest groups and the widely recognized National Journal put him solidly in the conservative camp. Ratings on a scale of 0-100.

Ratings

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Group Ratings 1993 1994 Americans for Democratic Action (liberal) 0 0 American Civil Liberties Union (pro-individual rights) - 13 Committee on Political Education (liberal-labor) 0 33 Consumer Federation of America (pro-consumer) 0 10 League of Conservation Voters (pro-environment) 14 6 Concord Coalition (pro-balanced budget) 52 86 National Security Index (pro-big military) - 100 Chamber of Commerce (pro-business) 91 75 American Conservative Union (conservative) 96 100 National Tax Limitation Conference (pro-tax limits) - 93 Christian Coalition (conservative) - 100

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National Journal Ratings

Analyzes list of roll call votes shaped into three policy areas. Rankings reflect relative liberalism or conservatism, with percentile scores showing Dornan’s rank relative to others in the House. Minimum score is 0, maximum is 99.

1993:

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Liberal Conservative Economic 0 88 Social 0 89 Foreign 0 91

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1994:

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Liberal Conservative Economic 0 80 Social 0 89 Foreign 0 88

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Key Votes (103rd and 104th Congress)

* North American Free Trade Agreement implementation: Yes (passed)

* Brady handgun purchase bill; provided waiting period before purchase of a handgun and instant criminal background check by dealers before any firearm transferred: No (passed)

* Balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution: Yes (passed)

* Line-item veto; gave president line-item authority on appropriations and targeted tax benefits in revenue acts: Yes (passed)

* Exclusionary rule; relaxed in cases of illegally obtained evidence in criminal cases: Yes (passed)

* Product liability reform; established legal standards and procedures for product liability cases: Yes (passed)

* Welfare reform; controlled welfare spending and reduced welfare dependence: Yes (passed)

* Term limits; would limit number of terms for members of Congress: Yes (failed)

* Tax cuts to strengthen families and create jobs: Yes (passed)

Source: Almanac of American Politics

Sanchez on the Record

Rep. Loretta Sanchez won her seat representing Orange County’s 46th Congressional District in 1996, beating Robert K. Dornan by 984 votes, 47% to 46%. Initially, Sanchez, who had never held elective office before, was perceived as naive and overwhelmed on Capitol Hill. But since then she has developed a legislative record marked by moderate success for a freshman legislator.

Attendance, 1997-1998: Number

Total roll calls: 914

Present: 886

Absent: 28

Legislation Introduced

1. Former South Vietnamese Army Commandos, H. Con. Res. 269

Honors and gains restitution for former South Vietnamese army commandos employed by the U.S. government. A number of the former commandos live in her district. Bill passed and became law. House did not pass similar bill introduced by Dornan in 1996.

2. Expand and Rebuild America’s Schools, HS. 2695

Would increase funding for school construction in suburban districts by reducing the cost of borrowing. Schools would owe only principal to investors, who would receive interest in the form of a federal tax credit. Not expected to pass before legislative session ends.

3. Older and Disabled Americans Protection Act of 1997, H.R. 3181

Would give shared housing agencies authority to run criminal background checks on people providing services to the elderly through shared housing programs. Not expected to pass before legislative session ends.

How She Votes

* Sanchez has voted consistently pro-environment, abortion rights and labor, but with conservative Democrats and moderate Republicans on fiscal issues.

* When county delegation’s five Republicans vote as a bloc, Sanchez has voted with them about half the time.

* Backed constitutional amendments to require two-thirds vote to raise taxes and allow Congress to criminalize flag desecration.

* Supported 1997 Tax Cut Act, bills to require adult prosecution of juveniles older than 14 charged with violent felonies, and to allow military to patrol the border.

* Opposed most-favored-nation trade status for China.

* Opposed ban on partial-birth abortions that included criminal penalties for doctors performing the procedure. Supported a medical exception to protect the life of the mother.

* Opposed 12-year term limit for Congress members, dropping her support when a bipartisan proposal to make it retroactive lost.

Votes Compared

How Sanchez’s 1997 voting record compares with those of other members of county delegation. Scores are percentages. Sanchez’s 57 on the liberal scale means she was more liberal than 57% of other House members on that issue:

MORE LIBERAL ON:

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Economic Social Foreign Ed Royce (R) 0% 0% Jay C. Kim (R) 19 30 0 Dana Rohrabacher (R) 0 0 32 Loretta Sanchez (D) 57 71 67 Christopher Cox (R) 15 20 23 Ron Packard (R) 34 10 38

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MORE CONSERVATIVE ON:

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Economic Social Foreign Ed Royce (R) 90% 90% 65% Jay C. Kim (R) 76 64 88 Dana Rohrabacher (R) 90 90 65 Loretta Sanchez (D) 43 29 32 Christopher Cox (R) 84 71 77 Ron Packard (R) 66 82 60

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Presidential Support

On 75 recorded votes in 1997 on which President Clinton took a position, Sanchez was much more likely to support him. Percentage of votes agreeing with Clinton:

ROYCE: 24%

KIM: 28%

ROHRABACHER: 20%

SANCHEZ: 69%

COX: 25%

PACKARD: 27%

Sources: Office of Rep. Loretta Sanchez, National Journal, Congressional Quarterly