Congress

There is something very unsettling about Michael P. Forbes's unwillingness to go out among the grass roots and campaign. Mr. Forbes did not have our endorsement in his first bid for Congressional office; his positions on major issues were too far from our own. But we thought highly of this pleasant young East Ender. Now, after almost four seemingly successful years in Washington, he seems even less of a good candidate than he did then. As an associate of Alfonse D'Amato, one of the worst Senators New York has ever sent to Washington, and a powerful one, Mr. Forbes had a favorable position as a freshman in Congress. He seemed a man to be watched. From time to time he even has voted against the directives of the G.O.P. majority as interpreted by Newt Gingrich, most often when his constituents' opinions were loud and clear. He has a much lower rating from the League of Conservation Voters than other New York Representatives. He voted against controlling assault weapons. He has favored a balanced budget and Dole's 15-percent tax cut. Even more, perhaps, he has not inspired confidence as a leader. He seems in fact to be less interested in the health and well-being of constituents than in advancing his own career. That, coupled with his tactic of refusing to engage fully in the campaign, and his reliance on reams of press releases and smiling pictures throughout his tenure, have worn thin.

We also have found exceedingly distasteful a last-minute appeal Mr. Forbes has made to those constituents who, like him, believe that abortion should be considered murder. A story on this appears in this issue.

Nora L. Bredes, on the other hand, is a person who got into politics because of personal convictions. In her time on the County Legislature she has proven to be public-spirited, hard-working, and even studious. She is an advocate for women and families. She refuses to be guided by the kind of knee-jerk responses we see in other officials, and should be given a chance to prove herself in higher office. We'd like to see her victory over Mr. Forbes on the issues that divide them, and we'd also like to see her help the Democrats take back the majority in the House for the next four years, while third-party candidates such as Ralph Nader's Greens help shift the political debate from being between the radical right and the center back to the center and an emerging, populist left.

We believe the Peconic Greens, who have called Ms. Bredes too soft on Brookhaven National Laboratory (which is under investigation for radioactive and chemical pollution) and urged a write-in vote for their own candidate, Lorna Salzman, are misguided in seeing this campaign through a single prism. Nora Bredes has had an impeccable environmental record, and is committed to fighting the Republican Party line Mr. Forbes has followed on the overwhelming social issues of our time. She was dealt a low blow by some of those who should have been working in her behalf.