Rep. Sherman Among No-Shows for Candidates’ Forum

Missed that debate between Brad Sherman, two-term Democratic congressman, and Jerry Doyle, Republican sci-fi actor? Don’t worry, you weren’t alone.

The first showdown, in Oxnard, was closed to the press. A second matchup, courtesy of the Woodland Hills Homeowners Organization, failed to synchronize schedules with Sherman, who was still in Washington. The forum went on without him.

“They just sent us a letter saying, ‘We’re having a forum, you’re speaking at this time. See you then,’ ” said Mike Gatto, Sherman’s campaign manager. “It was ridiculous.”

Gordon Murley, president of the homeowners group, said the timing couldn’t be helped, since his group won’t meet again until after the Nov. 7 election. “We knew going in that it was unlikely [Sherman could attend]. . . . But we’re limited in our time constraints in when we hold our meetings.”

(No hard feelings, Brad--Murley didn’t show up either. He had a meeting of the South Valley Area Planning Commission the same night.)

Nonetheless, the matter of a debate has ignited a few sparks in a race without much drama. Sherman, a Harvard-schooled tax attorney, is the clear front-runner, racking up more than twice the votes that Doyle got in the open primary.

Doyle, who played head of security Michael Garibaldi on the science-fiction television series “Babylon 5,” initially challenged Sherman to debate him “at least once before 12 noon and once after 12 noon” in each community in the 24th Congressional District, which stretches from the southern San Fernando Valley and Malibu into Calabasas and Thousand Oaks.

The actor later dropped the demand, saying he’d take on Sherman “any time, anywhere.” But on the Doyle-for-Congress Web site, the challenge lives on.

“What’s it going to be, Brad?? Are you afraid to discuss the issues?” taunts the site, which also features a clock counting down the days (142 so far) since Doyle invited Sherman to debate. “We continue to find this is a campaign issue,” said Garrett Biggs, a Doyle spokesman.

For the moment, however, the issue appears to be settled: The two men will face off in an Oct. 19 televised debate hosted by Adelphia Cable.

BUSH VS. CLINTON AGAIN: President Clinton appeared earlier this year at a fund-raiser for the campaign of state Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) to unseat Rep. James Rogan (R-Glendale), and now Rogan has gotten help from George Bush, the Republican president unseated by Clinton.

Bush was the featured speaker at a fund-raiser last week at a private home in Houston that raised about $45,000 for Rogan’s reelection.

“Jim is the only House candidate who he has done a fund-raiser for,” said Jason Roe, a spokesman for Rogan, adding that Bush “recognized the risk Jim took in the impeachment” of Clinton.

As for the other Bush, presidential candidate George W., the two campaigns have been talking about doing a joint appearance sometime before the Nov. 7 election, Roe said.

TAKEN FOR A RIDE: Those attending the 27th annual Los Angeles Korean Festival parade recently got to see an unusual demonstration of political harmony: mayoral candidates Joel Wachs and Antonio Villaraigosa sharing the same car, sitting side by side, smiling and waving to the throngs.

It turns out Wachs was supposed to ride in the city’s traditional parade car, a 1952 Chrysler, but the vehicle broke down and couldn’t be used. “Villaraigosa saw what was happening and offered Joel a ride,” said Greg Nelson, a Wachs aide.

Villaraigosa apparently resisted what may have been a temptation to use Wachs’ predicament as a metaphor for his mayoral campaign.

Even though the breakdown involved the loss of steering in the old car, the assemblyman made no comments about Wachs’ campaign lacking direction.

ALMOSTS DON’T COUNT: One word, specifically the word “not,” landed Rogan’s campaign in hot water with a coalition of homeowner groups in his district.

Testimonial letters are common from an individual member of a large group that is packaged in a way that might imply the group itself is endorsing, even though it isn’t. Disclaimers are usually placed at the bottom of the letter in small print.

The Glendale Homeowners Coordinating Council, a coalition of homeowner groups, does not endorse candidates in political races because it would violate rules set by its tax-exempt status.

The Rogan campaign circulated a testimonial letter from James Weling, who the letter said is a member of the coordinating council. At the bottom of the letter, the disclaimer reads “Title for identification purposes only, does imply organizational endorsement.”

The sentence should have read “does not imply organizational endorsement,” according to Rogan workers, but the “not” was not included.

“We were misrepresented” by the mailer, said Richard Ramirez, head of the coordinating council. “It sounds very deliberate to me, but I don’t know. The problem is the damage was done. It was sent to a lot of voters.”

Rogan’s campaign manager, Roe, said the campaign is sending out another letter to clarify the matter. He said the original letter had the proper disclaimer, but that the printer made the mistake.

“Anyone familiar with the language that was used can see it was an honest mistake,” Roe said.