Posted on 02/07/2004 8:36:25 PM PST by calcowgirl
LOS ALTOS HILLS, Calif. - Most people wouldn't have the gusto to challenge a two-term U.S. senator if the last elected office they held was in a small suburb.
But this virtual unknown is Republican Toni Casey, three-time mayor of Los Altos Hills, located outside San Jose and home to many high-tech executives who are used to getting their way.
Some around town remember Casey - who is running in the March 2 primary for a chance to campaign against U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer - as "egomaniacal" during her 12 years on the city council.
Others call her a "stalwart," someone with decisive leadership.
Although she hasn't run for office beyond Los Altos Hills, one of the nation's richest cities and home to the Giants' Barry Bonds and Intel co-founder Gordon Moore, Casey said she has as much, if not more, experience in government than her opponents.
As a city council member, she served on county advisory panels, then made her way around state legislatures as a lobbyist for biotech companies. President Bush appointed her in 2001 as a director at the U.S. Small Business Administration.
While her supporters call her smart and aggressive, she also alienated some of her earlier backers, such as Los Altos developer Roger Burnell, who helped her get elected for the first time in 1988.
Calling Casey a hard worker, Burnell said she became "egomaniacal" and "created her own ad hoc government" and tried to shove through a city hall rebuilding project over the loud opposition of hundreds of neighbors.
Casey disagreed, saying it was one neighbor who fought the city hall plan, which is moving forward in a few months with the construction of a similar design.
Her style has also been praised by her allies, who admire her tenacity pushing for abortion rights in a party that opposes them.
Ann Stone - national chairwoman of Republicans For Choice, a Virginia-based group that supports Republicans who support abortion rights - said Casey "was very blunt with (Bush) on this issue. She went the extra mile and really stood up for her beliefs."
Casey, 59, fought hard but unsuccessfully at the 2000 Republican National Convention for the party to adopt a pro-abortion rights platform. That was the same year that Bush's "compassionate conservatism" led her to finally become a registered Republican after years of supporting many Republican candidates.
Casey credits her tenacity to her mother, who raised four children in the small city of Bristol, Va. Casey's father, whom she acknowledges was an alcoholic, ran an accounting firm, while Casey's mother sold from the family home antiques, many of which decorate Casey's Architectural Digest-ready home.
When Casey worked as a lobbyist, she helped state Sen. Tom McClintock, R-Northridge, successfully carry through a bill that did away with a requirement for medical technologists to test blood samples. That allowed workers to use new instruments that can test blood samples on site, meaning that the vials didn't have to get moved around, Casey said. It's this kind of legislation Casey likes to see, ones that don't bog down innovation, she said.
It wasn't until 2001, after Bush appointed her as director of intergovernmental affairs for the Small Business Administration, when she was interested in running for higher office. After 18 months in that position, Casey resigned last year to run for U.S. Senate full time.
Blotting her resume, however, are two encounters with government Casey doesn't relish.
During the 1990s, she had to pay about $20,000 in back taxes and penalties to the Internal Revenue Service, the result, Casey said, of a mix-up involving her former husband. Her former husband, who she divorced before he died 10 years ago, had filed a joint tax return she said she knew nothing about. The IRS didn't accept all of her husband's deductions, Casey said.
In 1992, Casey was arrested for a DUI on Interstate 280 in Santa Clara, north of San Jose, while driving her BMW home after a party. Breath and blood samples showed Casey at .13. The legal limit is .08.
"I was barely over" the limit, there was no accident and no speeding, Casey said. "But that's no excuse," Casey said, adding that she did community service work to fulfill her obligations after the arrest.
On the issues, Casey supports the war Iraq and the effort to rebuild the shattered nation, but she opposes Bush's immigrant guest worker program, saying it "equates to amnesty."
Casey believes the United States doesn't need permission from the United Nations when making decisions that aim to protect American people. During times of widespread terrorist-related fears, deficit spending is a reasonable solution, she added.
Casey also proposes to reduce permanently and eliminate some taxes in order to spur the economy.
While Casey is considered a moderate among Republicans, she's not the only one in the Senate race, and that could cause her problems, said Allan Hoffenblum, a former GOP consultant who publishes the California Target Book.
Casey faces former U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin, as well as former California Secretary of State Bill Jones, who garnered an endorsement from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, and former Assemblyman Howard Kaloogian.
It would take millions of more dollars for Casey to become known to voters outside the Bay Area, Hoffenblum said.
Casey downplays such apparent difficulties, saying she's been campaigning full-time, reaching out to voters via radio and other campaigning efforts. Casey reported raising a total of $830,000 through Dec. 31.
That, she said, will help her "go toe to toe" with Boxer.
Since both were life long Democrats until a year ago the race would be interesting.
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