POPPIN’ UP : Foremen Leap Into Political Arena With ‘No Liberal’

The presidential campaign is under way and everyone’s trying to stay clear of slung mud--except the folk-satire group the Foremen. The L.A. quartet, something of a cross between Mark Russell and the Limeliters, wants to be the target of attacks.

To help promote the group’s debut album, “Folk Heroes,” Reprise Records has sent cassette copies of the song “Ain’t No Liberal” to candidates and politically oriented media figures, with mocking cover pictures of presidential candidate Pete Wilson. Reprise President Howie Klein admits that the intention is to bait the governor or another pol into a counterattack.

“My goal is to get politicians of all stripes to engage in the promotion of this record,” Klein says.

But rather than a swipe, he’s earned the admiration of one professional--Wilson campaign spokesman Dan Schnur.

“I’m a press secretary, so I’m as big a fan of shameless promotional gimmicks as they come,” Schnur says, embracing “Ain’t No Liberal” as a decent motto.

“As campaign slogans go, it’s no ‘Morning in America,’ but there’s no problem with it on this end. If [the Foremen] ever want to come by and hear our rap on why Pete Wilson’s never been a liberal, they’re more than welcome.”