One week to go: Fighting it out in usually Democratic states

Ron Fournier

Monday, Oct. 30, 2000 | 4:30 a.m.

Al Gore reminded voters in pivotal Great Lakes states Monday that economic good times returned to America under Democratic leadership and said changing course could "drive our economy into the ditch."

Republican George W. Bush countered that a big-spending Gore would squander the nation's economic riches but said the election rests on bigger questions: "Can we bring America together? Can we move beyond petty arguments to get real results for the American people?"

He said Gore could not, but he would. In a refrain that raised cheers from GOP faithful starved for victory after eight years out of power, the Texas Republican declared, "It won't be long now" until he wins the White House and brings "a new attitude and atmosphere to Washington."

Thus both Bush and Gore began the final full week of their nip-and-tuck campaign, fighting on Democratic turf and honing their close-the-sale messages. Gore campaigned in Michigan and Wisconsin while Bush visited New Mexico and California - all states won by Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996.

Gore plans to return to his home state of Tennessee on Friday night and Saturday, further evidence that Bush has put him on the defensive in the push to 270 state electoral votes - the number required for victory.

With the Texas governor and his deep-pockets GOP allies stretching Gore thin, the Democratic vice president has reduced by more than two thirds his ad campaign in the battleground state of Ohio - all but conceding those 21 electoral votes.

He is shifting the money to Illinois and Minnesota, where Bush has gained ground and Gore can't afford to lose. The vice president, aides said, also will increase his effort in Florida, spending about $2 million for ads in the state run by Bush's brother Jeb.

Florida is considered vital to Bush, though nervous GOP strategists now say he could win the presidency without the state's 25 electoral votes by snagging Pennsylvania (23 votes) or California (54 votes) from Gore's column. Polls show the Pennsylvania race tied or Gore ahead, and give the vice president a lead of 5-to-10 percentage points in California.

Bush said the nation's largest state is full of "independent thinkers" who wanted a president from outside Washington. "People forget I'm from the west: West Texas," he told California Republicans, with former rival Arizona Sen. John McCain at his side in Burbank, Calif. "Now that isn't exactly California, but it's a heck of a lot closer than Washington."

National surveys put Bush ahead or tied with Gore in the popular vote, and the race for electoral votes is just as tight. Neither side can afford to let an attack go unanswered.

With polls suggesting that Gore has made inroads in Florida, Pennsylvania other states by criticizing Bush's Social Security plans, the Texas governor promised not to cut benefits as president.

"No changes, no how, no way," he said, reminding Democrats of his father's no-new-taxes pledge.

Gore's campaign denied reports that he told Arab-Americans in a private meeting Sunday that he, unlike Bush, opposes moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Jewish groups, important in states like Florida, were sure to object so Gore aides rushed to clarify: The vice president, they said, told the group he has not supported moving the embassy at this time, but did not rule it out in the future.

Bush's campaign accused Gore of "blatant pandering."

Democratic running mate Joseph Lieberman questioned Bush's qualifications for a second day in a row, this time challenging Bush's education record. Replied Bush: "I never expected to get his vote anyway."

There was a flurry of activity on both sides:

- Clinton tried to mobilize black voters on behalf of Gore and congressional Democrats. A rally was held at the White House because Gore, afraid he will be overshadowed by his boss, doesn't want the president in battleground states. Still, the president heads to California and Kentucky this week.

- Green Party candidate Ralph Nader told supporters to stop worrying that a vote for him might help Bush win some traditionally Democratic states. "Vote your conscience. Vote your dreams," he said. To Gore's dismay, Nader appears Tuesday with Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura, an independent who has not taken sides in the race.

In a scene-setting speech in New Mexico, a tossup state with just 5 electoral votes, the Bush criticized Gore's plans for schools, taxes, Social Security and the military. But he focused most on the vice president's ties to Washington, a place he said where "there is so much anger, so much division, so much important work left to be done."

"My opponent can't bring America together," because he is surrounded by interest groups and guided by polls "that drain politics of its courage," Bush said.

"Should I be elected president, I'm going to confront the hard issues," he said. "I won't take the easy way - the Washington way. I will act. And I will lead."

Pharmacist Suzanne Heske, 38, attended Bush's Bosque Farms, N.M., rally looking for something new. "I want to get some fresh faces in there, get some fresh blood in there, and let's see some things happen," she said.

Standing on a sandy Lake Michigan beach, Gore said the economy boomed under the leadership of Clinton-Gore and now: "Prosperity itself is on the ballot."

"This campaign is a fork in the road when it comes to our economy," he said. One direction takes America farther down its current course and the other - a path first forged by Bush's father - is filled with the economic roadblocks of debt, unemployment and high interest rates, Gore said.

"I am not going to let us be dragged back to sky-high deficits that would drive interest rates through the roof and drive our economy into the ditch," he said.