CALIFORNIA ELECTIONS / U.S. SENATE : Boxer, Herschensohn Draw Sharp Differences on Issues

U.S. Senate candidates Barbara Boxer and Bruce Herschensohn once again painted sharply contrasting pictures Sunday, outlining their divergent views on defense spending and abortion as polls show their race narrowing.

In back-to-back appearances on ABC’s “This Week With David Brinkley,” Boxer defended herself against what she described as “vicious” television ads by her Republican opponent. Herschensohn, in turn, defended some of his more controversial views, including his belief in maintaining the military budget at Cold War levels.

Boxer, a five-term Democratic congresswoman from Marin County, and Herschensohn, a conservative former television commentator, are competing for the six-year Senate seat being vacated by Alan Cranston. A Los Angeles Times Poll published Sunday shows Boxer’s onetime double-digit lead cut in half--to nine points among registered voters.

Boxer blamed her precipitous fall in this and other polls on Herschensohn’s television commercials, some of which ran days before Boxer aired her ads. She said she has responded adequately and is again on even footing with her Republican rival.

“Now we’re toe to toe with Mr. Herschensohn and we’re getting the message out as to his views and my views,” she said. “We’ve got the momentum back now.”

Herschensohn’s ads paint Boxer as an insider who has abused the perks of office. She said some of the ads contain lies, such as Herschensohn’s contention that she has voted herself a $1-million pension. But Boxer said other points, such as the 143 overdrafts she wrote on the now-defunct House bank, are accurate and may have damaged her campaign.

The two appeared on the nationally televised program and were interviewed separately from ABC’s Los Angeles studio.

Herschensohn reiterated his belief that even though the Cold War is over and the Soviet Union has disintegrated, the United States cannot afford to allow a “perception of disarmament” by cutting defense spending.

“I don’t want the United States to lose its clout and influence in the world, and I believe it’s going to,” Herschensohn said. “Right now defense is 19% of our total budget. That is as low as it has ever been since before Pearl Harbor.”

Boxer, who would cut the military budget in half over the next five years, advocated shifting dollars from the defense of European and Asian allies to education and environmental programs.

She also said she believes abortion is a right of privacy guaranteed by the Constitution. Herschensohn opposes abortion and calls for the repeal of Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that guarantees a woman’s right to an abortion.