Hagman stumps for Hoffman

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Former Malibuite Larry Hagman — better known as oil baron J.R. Ewing of the ever-running TV show “Dallas” — posed for pictures Saturday with Republican congressional candidate Randy Hoffman and his supporters. Hoffman is challenging Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman for the 24th Congressional District, which includes Malibu and communities between Van Nuys and Thousand Oaks.

While Hagman lunched with supporters at the $50-a-head reception in Calabasas, Hoffman reported on three days of meetings with political action committees in Washington and plans for one of the most politically targeted seats in the country for the Nov. 3 election.

Hagman said he “only goes after candidates who make sense.” Hoffman, a millionaire high-tech entrepreneur, is running on themes of “real world experience for Congress,” and government accountability.

Hoffman reported he had raised more than $50,000 in Washington. At a reporters’ briefing, campaign manager Todd Slosek said this new money combined with the $530,000 Hoffman has already put into his campaign and the $200,000 reported at the end of June, should boost Hoffman’s war chest to $800,000 by the end of September. The funds would be used for campaign mailers, cable TV, precinct walking and absentee ballots, Hoffman said.

Future high-profile fundraisers include an Oct. 8 luncheon with former Vice President Dan Quayle, an Oct. 9 evening reception with Rep. Mary Bono and probably an Oct. 15 morning rally with House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Slosek said.

At the reporter’s briefing, Hoffman proposed that employees be allowed to put one-tenth of their Social Security payroll deduction into a personalized savings account. And, like President Clinton the same day, Hoffman said that 100 percent of the $1.6 trillion budget surplus projected over the next 10 years should be reserved for the Social Security system until it is reformed. The official Republican position is 90 percent of the budget surplus to go towards Social Security, and 10 percent for tax cuts, as passed by the House of Representatives Saturday in the “Taypayers Relief Act of 1998,” (HR 4579).