St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 31

EDITORIALS 2 COMMENTARY 3 OBITUARIES 4 GENERAL NEWS 4,6 NEWS ANALYSIS SECTION FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1992 CAMPAIGN '92 Campaign Trail Takes Unexpected Turns Carnahan's Public Image Transformed ByJoMannies Post-Dispatch Political Correspondent THE PEOPLE who ran for Missouri governor this M'M Id fir a ifr fV- i year, Lt. Gov. Mel Carnahan's For Webster, Road Became Rocky, Steep By Jo Mannies Post-Dispatch Political Correspondent ATTORNEY GENERAL WILLIAM L. WEBSTER identifies with Vice President Dan Quayle. Both men, in Webster's view, have become whipping boys of the press because of their conservative Republican views.

"There is a double standard," Webster says, echoing an anti-media theme he now is deploying regularly in his ads and on the stump. So perhaps it was fitting that Webster found himself traveling by car with Quayle earlier this week in southwestern Missouri. Webster says the two shared some of their observations and frustrations as they campaign relentlessly in a final effort to come from behind and defeat Democratic challengers Tuesday. Webster believes that his ultimate fate is tied to that of President George Bush. If Bush gets a surge in Missouri over the coming days, Webster believes, he can defeat Lt.

Gov. Mel Carnahan for governor. If Bush falters, Webster concedes, he could lose. a public image has undergone the most dramatic transformation. "From milquetoast to mastermind," quips Carnahan with a laugh.

With just a few days to go before Nov. 3, Carnahan is the front-runner in an exhausting and vicious race that already has claimed some of the state's best and brightest politicians in both parties. Carnahan's final opponent is Attorney General William L. Webster, a Republican who one year ago was considered virtually unbeatable. In contrast, last year Carnahan was viewed by many Democrats and Republicans alike as a weak candidate.

He often was described as a nice guy with a reputation as: A dull speaker. A poor fund-raiser. A politician who seemed to lack "fire in the belly." All of that has changed with Carnahan's success. At a fund-raiser in Clayton last Tuesday, he was greeted by hundreds of enthusiastic supporters eager to get on his bandwagon. Carna II Wayne CrosslinPost-Dispatch Lt.

Gov. Mel Carnahan, the Democratic nominee for governor, campaigning in St. Louis last month. He leads Attorney General William L. Webster in polls.

Wes PazPost-Dispatch Attorney General William L. Webster, the Republican candidate for governor, at a fund-raiser at Grant's Farm in June. Webster contends he has become a "whipping boy" of the press. "I'm very enthusiastic and about the response we've received on the road this week," Web ster says. "If the voters actually hear our message, I believe we will be successful." Webster has become more optimistic as some polls show Bush closing the gap, nationally and statewide, with Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton.

Webster also has made public his own campaign poll, which shows him trailing Carnahan by only seven points; independent polls have put Carnahan's lead in double digits. Webster admits that the campaign hasn't gone exactly the way he had hoped. When he officially hit the trail in the summer of 1991, Webster was the automatic front-runner. He had the name recognition, the telegenic reputation and the most money about $2 million in campaign funds before he officially declared. His announcement last winter at the Adam's Mark Hotel downtown was the most opulent affair of any of the candidates for governor.

The $2 million, and several million dollars more, came and went during the expensive and brutal Republican primary, in which Webster defeated Secretary of State Roy Blunt and Treasurer Wendell Bailey. Now, Webster is lagging behind Carnahan in money, and is holding fund-raisers this weekend. Webster's big campaign bash this fall at the Adam's Mark was held in the same ballroom as his earlier affair. But at the most recent event, the atmosphere was more austere; the rumpled 6-by-12-foot "Bill Webster" banner hanging from the ceiling was not new. Webster's campaign aides say they are devoting most of their money to pay for the negative TV ads they hope will knock Carnahan out.

Webster also appears to have adopted some of Quayle's aggressiveness. Webster's attacks against Carnahan in the duo's only statewide televised debate resembled Quayle's vigorous performance in the vice presidential debate. Webster said the gubernatorial debate "became more of a street fight than I would have liked." Webster plans to be in St. Louis today for Bush's "town He says he is touting his ties to Bush and Quayle because all share the same philosophy of less government, low taxes and family values. Webster regularly blasts Carnahan's $196 million education tax proposal, saying voters don't want higher taxes.

See WEBSTER, Page 4 At the Clayton fund-raiser, she gleefully scanned the room and told a reporter, "They know victory is here. They can see it and smell it." Carnahan says his own campaign and fund raising are going so well that he now is assisting other Democratic candidates, notably state Sen. Roger Wilson of Columbia, the party's candidate for lieutenant governor. Carnahan's fingerprints are seen in the campaigns of Wilson and attorney general candidate Jay Nixon, who also focus heavily on Webster. Carnahan says he has wanted to be governor since the late 1970s, when he decided the state was going nowhere; he lost in the Democratic primary in 1984.

Carnahan's best memories of state government are of his tenure in the Missouri House in the 1960s during the first two years of then-Gov. Warren Hearnes' term. Carnahan admired Hearnes' activism, which is reflected in Carnahan's frequent campaign declaration that "I don't want to be governor to warm a chair." At 58, Carnahan is 19 years older than Webster. Carnahan was the oldest of the five major candidates three Republicans and two Democrats who battled for two years for their parties' nominations. Webster was the han is now seen as a political powerhouse.

"Mel Carnahan will probably bring Clinton in on his coattails," said Dr. John Frederickson, who co-hosted the Clayton event along with his wife, Alix Frederickson. The latest campaign reports show that Carnahan has raised almost $600,000 more than Webster just in the last month. In all of the polls, the numbers vary, but Carnahan is always ahead. Now Webster's campaign is trying to paint Carnahan as the scheming mastermind of a united Democratic effort to knock off the entire GOP statewide ticket.

Webster campaign manager Tony Feather says, "The type of campaign he's running has never been matched. It's the most negative campaign ever, based on the least amount of facts." Carnahan insists that the facts are documented by newspaper articles. And he continues to hammer away at Webster's connections with the state's troubled Second Injury Fund. True or not, Carnahan's attacks are getting even harsher in these final days. "I got my choice of opponents," Carnahan said Tuesday in a speech at the city's 20th Ward Democratic Club.

"He's an opponent on his way down. We're very confident about the outcome." When asked later about a Webster poll that shows Carnahan leading by only seven percentage points, Carnahan replies, "That's Bill Webster's wishful thinking." Such blunt language seems unusual for Carnahan, who usually displays a reserved, almost laid-back, demeanor sort of like Perry Como with a southern Missouri twang. But that reserve hides a strong competitive streak, which is shared by his wife, Jean Carnahan, and the couple's fouf grown children. The whole family is actively involved in the campaign, to the point that even the children collar reporters on occasion to discuss coverage. Last week, Jean Carnahan and the children fanned out to make campaign stops in 81 communities over four days.

Jean Carnahan also oversees her husband's computerized direct-mail fund-raising office in Rolla. youngest of the group. Carnahan is not as smooth or as comfortable as Webster on the stump or on television, but Carnahan's style has improved in recent months. Carnahan also believes that he has succeeded in a larger battle by controlling most of the dynamics of the two-man campaign. Although the two do discuss issues, the major focus of their ad campaigns is Webster Carnahan attacking Webster and Webster defending himself.

Abortion hasn't been much of a campaign issue for either candidate. Carnahan believes that's because most voters know that he favors abortion rights and Webster does not. Despite the intensity of the campaign's final days, Carnahan retains that relaxed air about him. He says he tries to pace his schedule so he can get enough rest to keep up the See CARNAHAN, Page 4 PR 1. vi.

i wssm GREGORY FREEMAN URBAN VIEW Hizzoner Won't Be Forgotten wmF I Hill IWn Jijjl -4 j.J FOR NEARLY 12 years, he's been Mr. Mayor, Hizzoner, Mayor Vince. And now, after more than a decade of battling, Mayor Vincent C. Schoemehl Jr. is not seeking re-election, stunning news to the city's political world.

Schoemehl's dominance of the political landscape here is legendary. Schoemehl took a "weak mayor" system by the tail and made it work for him. As a former alderman, his legislative skills and political muscle he's never been afraid of playing hardball allowed him to determine the course of this city's development. All of that combined with Schoemehl's colorful, sometimes even flamboyant, personality to result in plenty of fights over the years. He fought with Gene McNary when McNary was St.

Louis County executive. They were at one time allies, pushing for the development of the region. "I sell the sizzle; he sells the steak," Schoemehl once said of his county counterpart. But when Schoemehl pressed hard for a football stadium in the city instead of McNary's hopes of building it in the county, the tension between the two men built like a rope pulling in two directions. As in many of his other battles, Schoemehl eventually won out.

But after three terms of battling, any politician is bound to pick up enemies, and Schoemehl's no exception. His enemies made their presence known statewide earlier this year as Schoemehl sought to become the first sitting St. Louis mayor to become governor since David R. Francis was elected in 1888. They helped in making sure he suffer a humiliating defeat in the August Democratic primary.

Ironically, one of his enemies was Virvus Jones, who first became comptroller because of a City Hall "job swap" that Schoemehl engineered. Jones was joined by Rep. William L. Clay, another former Schoemehl ally who eventually became an enemy. Then there was the Bridgeton Air Defense, a group that hounded Schoemehl because he pushed a plan to expand Lambert Field into Bridgeton.

St. Louis police battled with him over salaries and pensions. Kim Tucci, a restaurateur who was once Schoemehl's teacher at the old DeAndreis High School, had been a longtime supporter and financial backer, but his relationship with the mayor soured in the late '80s. He's now backing another Schoemehl enemy, state Rep. Anthony D.

Ribaudo, for mayor. When it came to Schoemehl enemies, the lines formed to the right. With Schoemehl out, four major candidates are seek ing the job: Circuit Clerk Freeman Bosley Ribaudo; businessman and former Alderman Steve Roberts; and aldermanic President Thomas A. Villa. For Villa, Schoemehl's announcement is probably good news.

Many of Schoemehl's supporters were also Villa's supporters. With Schoemehl out of the race, Villa is likely to have an easier time of it. It's difficult, at this point, to determine what Schoemehl's absence will mean for the other three candidates. For certain, they won't be able to run against the incumbent. Having Schoemehl in the race would have made it easier for them in that regard.

But his absence should mean more money available for all four candidates. Schoemehl made fund raising an art form. As the incumbent, he could raise money in a way that seemed almost effortless, and he ran the city's first $1 million campaign. With him out of the race, there will be more money to spread around. As a journalist, I will miss Vince Schoemehl.

I covered his first term, from 1981 to 1985, and have written about him off and on since then. Schoemehl was always colorful, always able to turn a phrase and give a reporter a catchy quote. "They must think I'm Skippy the punk," he once said, during one of his legendary fights with the Board of Aldermen. "You pay your nickel, you take your chances," he once commented, discussing his unsuccessful efforts to get voters to reopen Homer G. Phillips Hospital.

At another time, he called an impromptu press conference after being criticized by some aldermen be-cause of his unsuccessful efforts to reopen Phillips. "They the aldermen are prancing and posturing before the press for their own personal satisfaction," he said. "If they think they can get that hospital open any quicker than I can, here's a key to the hospital. Let's see how quick they are." Schoemehl once summoned another reporter and me to his office at midnight for an unusual interview in which he blasted G. Duncan Bauman, the publisher of the old St.

Louis Globe-Democrat. Schoemehl alleged that Bauman was using the influence of his newspaper to punish Schoemehl and the other four members of the Police Board because they had refused to select Bauman's preference for police chief. Make no bones about it, this guy's colorful. This is hardly Schoemehl's epitaph. He's also tough and young enough to again seek political office some day.

Meanwhile, there's no doubt that he's put his stamp on government and politics in this city and will not be forgotten soon. -twite.