ELECTIONS / 24TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT : Kemp Helps McClintock Raise $45,000 at Fund-Raiser

Federal housing chief and conservative darling Jack Kemp was the star attraction Wednesday at a Studio City fund-raiser for Republican congressional contender Tom McClintock, who is trying to close a wide fund-raising gap between himself and his Democratic opponent, Anthony C. Beilenson.

McClintock, whose campaign kitty was badly depleted after his hard-fought victory over eight other GOP candidates in June’s primary election, took in about $45,000 at the breakfast event, which attracted more than 300 contributors.

The conservative Thousand Oaks assemblyman is battling Beilenson, a veteran liberal congressman who has long represented parts of Los Angeles’ Westside and the west San Fernando Valley, in the newly created 24th Congressional District, which stretches from Sherman Oaks to Malibu and north to Thousand Oaks.

At the end of June, McClintock reported having only $17,404 in cash available for the Nov. 3 election, according to federally required campaign reports. Beilenson, who was unopposed in the Democratic primary, said he had $165,319 on hand. Updated fund-raising reports are due next month.

McClintock said his $150-a-head fund-raiser at the Sportsmen’s Lodge was intended to help eliminate the “huge advantage” in campaign cash Beilenson held over him as the summer began. McClintock’s campaign hopes to raise $400,000 for the fall campaign; Beilenson plans to raise $500,000.

But, McClintock said, “it doesn’t matter what Beilenson spends. If we’re able to clearly communicate our message, clearly we’ll win.”

“I’m just really not that worried about what Beilenson raises from the Hollywood Left on the Westside,” he said.

Besides Kemp, U. S. housing and urban development secretary, those at McClintock’s fund-raiser included singer Pat Boone, conservative author David Horowitz and former Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Ron Brown.

Also in attendance were at least two Republicans who lost to McClintock in the primary, attorney Nick Hariton and airline pilot Bill Spillane.

In a rousing speech that drew a standing ovation from the audience, Kemp praised McClintock as someone who will work to cut taxes and “flood America with capital” in order to create new businesses and jobs.

Kemp described Beilenson as a personal friend, but called him an “elitist.”

“I happen to like him; he’s a very decent man. But he’s not the right man for the job,” Kemp said.

Given their wide ideological differences, the race between McClintock and Beilenson is expected to draw national attention. Voter registration is almost evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats in the new district, but it covers generally more conservative turf than Beilenson has campaigned on in the past.

At the fund-raiser, McClintock repeated charges that Beilenson, a 16-year veteran of Congress, is a tax-and-spend liberal.

“He’s never met a tax he didn’t like or a business he did,” McClintock declared, adding that Beilenson has “voted for every major tax increase of this decade.”

McClintock also accused Beilenson of opposing a constitutional amendment for a balanced federal budget and for giving the President the power to veto individual budget items.

Beilenson denied that he consistently votes for tax increases, calling McClintock’s charges “foolishness.”

He said that in a 1991 rating by the National Taxpayers Union, he “scored higher than 63% of all members of the House, and second best among California Democrats. And there are 26 of us.”

“On fiscal matters, I’m a very conservative member of the House,” he said.

Beilenson said he voted against the proposed constitutional amendment this year in part because it would not take effect until 1997. He believes Congress should take serious steps immediately to control the deficit.

He said that the proposal also would “absolutely destroy the economy” by forcing large federal spending cuts to take place in only a few years.