Quayle Says Dole Could Slip Further

CLIVE, Iowa (AllPolitics, May 14) -- Former vice president Dan Quayle predicts presumptive GOP nominee Sen. Robert Dole (R-Kan.) will come back, though he said Dole's polling numbers might sag further before rebounding. The reason? Unprecedented internal GOP sniping, according to the former veep.

Quayle says Dole was badly hurt by fellow Republicans during the contested primaries earlier this year. "They went after each other in a tough, personal and at times ugly way," Quayle told reporters at a book-signing event for his just-published work on family values. Republicans should have targeted the president, Quayle said, noting that the Dole campaign's spending freeze will make it more difficult to rebuild the Kansan's image.

The former vice president has joined the growing list of prominent Republicans to weigh in the party's current malaise. His comments echoed House Speaker Newt Gingrich's themes, albeit in more moderate tones, that Republicans should avoid an intra-party blame game.

"It's not helpful to continue the intramural debate," he said. "The opponent is Bill Clinton." Recently, Sen. Alfonse D'Amato (R-N.Y.) has repeatedly attacked conservative pundit Pat Buchanan as intolerant, and said House Speaker Newt Gingrich should moderate the House agenda to avoid alienating the voters. Meanwhile, conservative moralist William Bennett and Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol have groused that Dole's lackluster candidacy is doomed to defeat.

Quayle, a favorite of the powerful bloc of religious conservatives, predicted that the party's anti-abortion plank would not be changed substantially, despite calls from some Republicans. "It would be foolish to change at this juncture," he said.

Quayle Says Dole Could Slip Further

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