ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : It’s Time for an Airing of Issues

The special election to replace William Campbell (R-Hacienda Heights) in the state’s 31st Senate District has given new meaning to the phrase quick and dirty. The six-week contest--which thankfully ended Tuesday--included little discussion of issues to help voters make an intelligent choice.

Earlier in the campaign, Republican candidate Ron Isles was censured by the Orange County Republican Party for a campaign brochure that chided two of his Republican opponents with the title, “Meet the Two Best Legislators Money Can Buy.” But what brought the election to new depths were remarks made last weekend by one of the Republican candidates, Assemblyman Gil Ferguson of Newport Beach, who called a group of gay-rights activists “faggots.” He was reacting to their militant protest against his candidacy.

Ferguson is an elected official, so a little dignity could be expected from him. Instead, his response was: “I don’t care about them. I’m a retired Marine. . . . A couple of faggots out there aren’t going to scare me.” He later refused to back down. “I could have called them sodomites,” he said.

This type of gay-bashing by a public official is inappropriate. Ferguson demeaned not only gays but himself by stooping to this level. We hope that in the April runoff election campaign, the candidates will sling less mud and talk more about issues of import to the voters.