Condit Dares Foes to Bring Up Levy

Rep. Gary Condit, facing an uphill bid for reelection, dared his opponents Monday to make an issue of his relationship with Chandra Levy.

He said that the scandal surrounding the missing intern was a media fabrication and that he would not let “the pundits and the talking heads� chase him from the race.

Sounding alternately bitter, defiant and deflated during his first media interview in months, Condit said he came close to stepping aside rather than fighting to keep the congressional seat he has held for 12 years. As late as Friday morning--just hours before the state’s filing deadline--the Democrat weighed the matter with his family.

“It was not an easy call,� he said, but in the end Condit opted to run because he decided it was up to the residents of the central San Joaquin Valley to decide “whether they want me to represent them or not.�

“I don’t know that I could be comfortable letting the national press, the people in Washington, D.C., the pundits and the talking heads determine my decision,� Condit said.

Speaking by telephone from his home in Ceres, the congressman defended his widely panned interview last summer with ABC’s Connie Chung, criticized several of his critics and called himself the underdog in the race to keep his congressional seat.

He said he contacted Washington police after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to make sure the probe into Levy’s disappearance “didn’t . . . fall through the cracks.�

“As far as I’m concerned, as long as she’s missing the Chandra Levy issue should not go away,� he said, dismissing suggestions that his political fortunes may have risen since world events overtook the scandal. “I’m hopeful law enforcement people and the media will focus on it.�

Police have repeatedly said that they have no evidence of foul play and that Condit, 53, is not a suspect in Levy’s disappearance. He has been repeatedly questioned by authorities, however, and last month a grand jury served a subpoena on the six-term lawmaker. Condit said Monday the subpoena covered items such as phone message pads, newspaper articles and other things he already was prepared to turn over.

The congressman has steadfastly refused to detail in public his relationship with Levy, a USC graduate student from Modesto, who disappeared last spring after completing an internship at the U.S. Bureau of Prisons in Washington. Levy’s family has said the two were having an affair and Condit has reportedly admitted as much to police. But publicly he has said only that he shared a “very close� relationship with the 24-year-old Levy.

Condit suggested Monday that most people outside the media respect the “boundaries� he established to fence off his private life, and said he was “a little embarrassed� by all the support he has gotten from supporters across the country.

“People relate to this in the sense that I have been mistreated in terms of my civil liberties and in terms of the theory in this country that one is innocent until proven guilty,� Condit said.

Challenging the media along with his political foes, he said, “If you guys want to exploit this tragedy, or Dennis or Monteith or any other candidate, let it be on their head, not mine.�

Says He’s Not Angry but Sounds Bitter

Condit’s chief rival in the March 5 Democratic primary is Assemblyman Dennis Cardoza of Merced, a former staffer and Condit protege. The leading Republican is state Sen. Dick Monteith of Modesto, another old Condit ally.

The beleaguered lawmaker insisted he was not angry about the events that have turned his life into a series of tabloid headlines. But he often sounded bitter during the 20-minute interview, repeatedly criticizing news coverage of Levy’s disappearance and referring to “the fabricated scandal . . . the national media has put us in.�

At one point, he scoffed that many of the TV analysts who questioned his truthfulness in the Levy matter are now critiquing the war in Afghanistan. “They’re all experts on everything,’ he said sarcastically. “It’s amazing to me.�

Monday’s interview came after months of seclusion following a brief--and largely disastrous--media blitz by Condit over the summer. The centerpiece of that political rehabilitation effort was a nationally televised interview with ABC’s Chung.

Instead of helping Condit, the appearance heightened accusations that the lawmaker was hiding the truth. California Gov. Gray Davis and House Democratic leader Richard Gephardt of Missouri were among those leading the criticism.

“Obviously, it was not a good interview,� Condit said Monday, though he suggested “it’s pretty difficult to do any interview . . . when [the] second question is, ‘Did you murder the girl?’ when they know you didn’t and police already said you’re not a suspect.

“Maybe you didn’t like my answers to all the questions. Maybe she didn’t like the answers to all my questions,� Condit went on, referring to Chung. “The fact is I answered all the questions. Someone should at least give me credit for that.�

As for the criticism by Davis and others, Condit said what they should have said was, “ ‘You did a bad interview.’ I would have accepted that. That’s a fair criticism.�

Admits Long Odds to Win Reelection

Despite his often angry words, Condit maintained an even tone as he spoke from his home. At different times, a dog barked and an infant squalled in the background.

He said it was “nonsense, just total nonsense� to insist he posed as a family man in his conservative district while living a racy lifestyle in Washington.

“The fact is people know I come home every weekend,� said Condit, who got his political start in 1972 on the Ceres City Council. “The people of the Central Valley know I’ve represented them in some capacity for almost 30 years. They absolutely know who the heck I am. They get me.�

Still, Condit conceded that he faced long odds in his reelection bid and acknowledged there was only so much he could do as a candidate running beneath a cloud of controversy.

Voters “know I’m a pretty independent fellow,� he said. “I think if they focus on that, focus on the record, I’ll come out OK. If they’re not focused on that, it’s going to be hard.�

For his part, Gephardt plans to remain neutral in the Democratic primary, a spokesman said Monday, underscoring the isolation that Condit faces within his own party.

Davis “has made no endorsements for 2002,� said his political strategist, Garry South. Asked whether Davis had ruled out a Condit endorsement, South had no comment.