POLITICS TV CAMPAIGNING : Wilson Is First to Fire Back at Feinstein

As Democratic candidate for governor Dianne Feinstein gained strength and oomph with a powerful early television advertising campaign, the question has followed her: When will her rivals feel they must start firing back with their own campaigns on the airwaves?

The answer came Thursday night as the first counter-volley was aired in Fresno and Eureka.

The new commercial did not come from fellow Democrat John K. Van de Kamp. Instead, it was the work of Republican U.S. Sen. Pete Wilson, who has no serious primary election opposition in June, but does have a bulging financial war chest.

“Vision” is the title of the 60-second Wilson commercial, crafted in the biography genre.

Distinctly nonpartisan in tone and containing no reference to Wilson’s party affiliation, the ad has a local-government flavor which seemed aimed at Feinstein’s rising star--as if to pit former San Diego Mayor Wilson against former San Francisco Mayor Feinstein.

Wilson chose as his slogan one that some voters may recall. “Pete Wilson--taking charge of California’s future.” It was last used in 1988: “Michael Dukakis--Let’s take charge of America’s future.”

The Wilson TV spot emphasizes his environmental credentials, fiscal management and--as Feinstein did in her commercial--his support for the death penalty.

Neither Wilson nor Feinstein supported the tax-cutting Proposition 13 in 1978. But Wilson’s ad includes a quote from Prop. 13’s author, the late Howard Jarvis: “We wouldn’t have needed Prop. 13 if everyone had run their cities like Pete Wilson.”

If Republicans wanted a pro-growth, sky’s-the-limit candidate, this commercial will prove a disappointing start by their nominee-apparent.

Not only does it remind watchers that Wilson has long fought against offshore oil drilling, it declares: “Before the environmental movement had begun, he wrote the first coastal protection act to limit development of our coastline. . . . He was the first big-city mayor in the country to lay down the law to developers to control growth and preserve open space.”

Finally, the commercial notes that Wilson co-authored a federal law providing the death penalty for people who kill federal drug agents.

Although shown first in smaller markets, the Wilson spot is expected to move into larger areas soon, sources said. The choice of Fresno and Eureka comes at a time when Feinstein is on the air with her highly rated 30-second biographical commercial in Eureka and has just finished a run in Fresno.

Van de Kamp’s campaign has shown no indication of airing its own commericials in the immediate future.

Democrats reacted sarcastically to the early move by Wilson. “I would have thought that the $16 million he spent two years ago (in his campaign for the U.S. Senate) would have acquainted voters in Fresno with his biography. I guess it’s not that memorable,” said Van de Kamp campaign lieutenant Duane Peterson.

Feinstein campaign manager William Carrick wondered if the Dukakis-esque slogan would be followed with other similarities: “Next I guess we’ll hear about the San Diego miracle.”

Times political writer Keith Love contributed to this article.