Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell, known for riding his Harley past the august buildings of the nation's capital, says motorcycle clubs have a bum rap.

Campbell, D-Colo., showed up Sunday in Livermore, Calif., at a party celebrating the end of parole for Hells Angels founder Ralph "Sonny" Barger. Campbell said the traditional image of bikers as a menacing bunch is out of synch with reality."These clubs are much different now. They're very respectable," said Campbell, who vouched for Barger in a letter to his sentencing judge.

Barger, who helped start the Hells Angels in 1957, was released from prison in 1992 after serving almost five years in prison on federal firearms, explosives and arson convictions tied to an alleged plot to kill members of the rival Outlaws motorcycle club.

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Campbell, who doesn't face re-election until 1998, said attending a Hells Angels event might be considered politically damaging. "But if this nation can't give a person a second chance, then it's not my idea of a democracy."

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