Just Call Him Senator

Forget about all those other labels-the old song and dance man, the late-late-late-show good guy, Moppet Shirley Temple's straight man. From now on, just call George Murphy "Senator." He has more than earned the right and the job.

Murphy's victory last week over short-term Incumbent Democrat Pierre Salinger was a classic study in how to handle the California electorate. Democrats there outnumber Republicans 3 to 2. To rate even the thinnest chance of winning, Murphy not only had to hold onto all factions of the G.O.P., from rabid-right kooks to solid moderates, he also had to pick up some 20% of Democratic and Independent votes.

Blue Eyes v. Blue Jowls. His campaign was managed by Robert Finch, Dick Nixon's old stage director. And the winning script was simple enough: be bland, be affable, offend no one by taking controversial stands, and never let anyone forget that Salinger was a carpetbagging resident of Virginia when he entered the campaign. To please the right wing, Murphy endorsed Goldwater; to please the moderates, he constantly referred to his differences with Barry on the civil rights bill and foreign aid cuts. Murphy's blue-eyed good looks contrasted jarringly with Pierre's blue-jowled appearance, an important point in image-conscious California. After it was all over, even Democratic Governor Pat Brown was impressed by the Republican campaign, called it "one of the best I have ever seen." Murphy's victory could do much to produce a badly needed change in the decibel count of the California G.O.P.

-toning it down from a right-wing screech to a more moderate sound. Indeed, at one time Murphy was closely associated with the superpatriotic California crusade of Dr. Fred Schwarz.

But Murphy's Senate campaign obviously convinced voters that his outlook toward such extremism has changed substantially. Said Campaign Manager Finch: "I had to find this out for myself before I went to work in the campaign.

It wasn't until I was satisfied that Murph is strictly his own man-he doesn't owe anybody anything-that I agreed to lend a hand." No Instant Sage. As a Senator, Murphy will likely push hard on issues of particular California interest, such as desalinization projects to ease the state's water problems and increased defense spending in the hope of pumping more military dollars into the plants back home. Generally, he will probably vote as a conservative on fiscal matters, a cautious liberal on civil rights, and as a selective Senator on such matters as foreign aid. Murphy may not become an instant Senate sage, however. At times he is given to sweepingly naive comments that scarcely smack of legislative statesmanship. Looking forward last week to his new job, Murphy announced: "I'm going to work to see that foreign policy is taken away from the State Department and given back to the people." Nonetheless, Senator Murphy's move from Hollywood to Capitol Hill came only after a great deal of intense personal dedication and strong selfdiscipline. In the Senate, such qualities should never be underrated.

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