By JOHN GOOLRICK

By JOHN GOOLRICK

There is much to commend about Mike Farris and his candidacy for lieutenant governor of Virginia. The Republican nominee does not evade or waffle on the issues. He tackles them head on and gives frank and forthright opinions.,

And his decision not to engage in a closed door debate sponsored by a police fraternal organization on grounds it violated the public’s right to know what candidates are saying certainly deserves praise.

One of his supporters, Del. Bill Howell of Stafford, contends that if Farris could meet person-to-person with all of Virginia’s six million inhabitants he would be a shoo-in for election.

That might be the case. One-onone Farris comes across as a reasonable person with reasonable views about state government. And yet that is not the case in media portrayals of his candidacy, and those portrayals are what may well doom him to defeat.

Just last week I saw several news articles about rallies held for Fams. One such article portrayed the rally as a cross between a political gathering and a Christian revival.

Another said the meeting was punctuated by prayer and gospel music and that Farris was loudly applauded when he said if he had his way he would chop off the head of the state lottery as if it were a snake.

Farris’ problem, and it is a huge problem, is that he is perceived, not only by many Democrats and independents, but also by many Republicans as the Pat Robertson candidate whose agenda is a narrowly fundamentalist one. That perception I believe is unfair and unfounded, but is fueled by the kind of media reports I have described and by Farris’ seeming inability to stay focused on those issues that are of most concern to average Virginians — namely crime, education, the economy, transportation and health care.

I do not condone it, but I have to report I know personally of dozens of Republicans, many of them party