By KATHERINE PETERSEN
Republican candidate Benjamin Brink will challenge Democratic incumbent Anna Eshoo Nov. 5 to represent the 14th District in the U.S. House of Representatives for a two-year term.
Brink, who was defeated by Eshoo in 1994, has committed to running three times.
Yet observers don't feel there is much of a race this time around. Eshoo is well-established, and Brink is not competitive enough in name recognition or funding, said Terry Christensen, a political science professor at San Jose State University.
"She's also a formidable campaigner when she needs to be. The fact that Bill Clinton is so far ahead bodes well for Democrats like Eshoo," Christensen said.
Brink keeps himself busy, juggling his campaign effort and care of his six-week-old son. He has worked in Silicon Valley for 20 years and serves as a Navy Reserve commander. He holds technical degrees from Stanford University and a master's in business administration from Harvard University.
Having worked with several successful companies in Silicon Valley and then started his own environmental technology company, Brink found that government stifles small businesses and technology.
"That experience drove me to examine governmental issues and then got me involved with politics," said Brink, whose campaign headquarters are in Sunnyvale. He discovered that every step he took in developing his company required approval from 17 to 21 regulating agencies.
"I just felt that this was an issue that was annoying me enough that I felt there needed to be an advocate to relook at the way our government regulates and stifles, without intention, small business growth," he said, adding that more jobs come from smaller companies than larger ones. The House of Representatives has no members who come from technology, he said.
Advocating for education is not new to Brink, but now his son gives him a personal reason to fight for it.
Brink knows the future of Moffett Federal Airfield is an important issue for residents of Sunnyvale and has said that the community should be polled to learn their desires, and if elected, he would represent them in Congress. There are alternatives to commercial aircraft at Moffett, he said.
He has also studied the issue of consolidating research aircraft at Moffett to Southern California, a NASA effort his opponent has fought against--and lost--at the congressional level.
"That decision should be based on economic efficiency," Brink said. "NASA is one of the most inefficient organizations, as is most of the scientific community.
"NASA is a prime example of an agency that spends far too much and gets far too little done. If you could get NASA and other scientific organizations under control, more money could be spent on science," Brink said, citing a $1 million cost of moving a Naval Reserve unit from one hangar to another at Moffett, with NASA doing the construction to rebuild the new location.
Brink did well enough in his 1994 bid that the Democratic Party spent $3 million to get out the vote during the last weeks of the campaign.
"I think I have a reasonable chance, although the challenger is always the underdog," he said.
He criticized his opponent for being a traditional politician, who says what people want to hear and then does what she wants. Eshoo has gone on record in support of a balanced budget amendment, yet she has voted against it time and time again, he said. He also claimed Eshoo sent out a taxpayer-paid mailer declaring herself a leader in campaign finance reform, he said.
"If you are a leader in [campaign reform], you would know that that's not where you proclaim it. In that piece she supported a bill that would increase the amount of money PACs can give politicians," he said. Eshoo said no campaign material is sent from her legislative office.
Eshoo opposes state Propositions 208 and 212, which deal with campaign reform, because they deal with complex issues and attempt to write law.
"I think they are flawed," she said.
She defends her record at the federal level, saying she has worked hard on campaign finance reform.
"The 105th Congress will have to take on a recent Supreme Court decision which drew a nexus between First Amendment rights and money," she said, adding that it lifted all limits on parties, which would put more money into campaigns.
"It's high time that we limit campaign spending on a federal level," she said.
Eshoo isn't taking this race for granted. The most important issues for the nation at this time are to keep the economy growing, reduce the deficit and move toward a balanced budget, she said.
Eshoo said she has voted against placing a balanced budget amendment in the Constitution, but voted for the soundest budget, called the Coalition Budget.
"It saved more than the Republican budget, and it did something different than the budget offered by Democrats. It had no tax breaks in it whatsoever. It also protected the environment, education and protected Medicaid for children and frail elderly," Eshoo said.
Eshoo knows Sunnyvale residents soundly opposed NASA's proposal to bring air cargo flights to Moffett Field.
"The citizens are reviewing the big picture, which is necessary," she said.
After a consensus is reached and if it requires Federal legislation, she said she will represent the concerns of her constituents.
Eshoo continues her efforts to oppose NASA's proposed consolidation of research aircraft at Moffett to Southern California. She requested the Inspector General's reports which found that such a consolidation would not be economically beneficial.
"The savings NASA claimed would not be seen for 52 years," Eshoo said.
Eshoo plans to work on a bill that would help families save money for their children's college tuition without being penalized.
"I want to come up with unique ways that would motivate and reward young families to save money for their children's education. They shouldn't have to pay penalty taxes on savings," she said.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, October 30, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.