Dole, Kemp Spread GOP Word On Tax Cuts

White House Hopefuls Head To Pittsburgh

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AllPolitics, Aug. 17) -- Bob Dole and Jack Kemp arrived in Kemp's hometown Saturday after a day of campaigning for their proposed 15 percent tax cut in the electoral-rich Midwest.

Dole and Kemp, a former quarterback for the Buffalo Bills who later represented the area in Congress, were greeted at a private airstrip by local Republican officials and some of Kemp's former teammates.

The GOP presidential and vice presidential nominees arrived from Illinois in the middle of a weekend swing through four states won by President Clinton in 1992.

The sauna-like atmosphere at the Illinois State Fair's livestock center was a world away from the ocean breezes of San Diego, where the Republican convention ended Thursday. But the central message of the tax cut, a concept with proven voter appeal, carried through.

"They're trying to scare the American people about my pro- growth economic plan," Dole said of the Clinton administration, which says the nation cannot afford Dole's proposals. Clinton used his radio address Saturday to criticize the plan.

"The only people who should be scared," Dole said, "the only people who are really scared -- you can almost see it in their faces -- are the Democrats in the White House, who are on their way out."

'Party Of Lincoln'

While speaking to overwhelmingly white audiences in Illinois, the Dole-Kemp ticket continued to spread the gospel of the Republicans' big tent.

"I meant every word I said the other night about (President Abraham) Lincoln, about being the party of Lincoln," Dole told a crowd.

"And I said, if anybody's attached themselves to our party under the feeling that we're ... somehow opposed to certain races, or certain religions, the exits are clearly marked and out you can go."

Dole and Kemp drove home the point visually, with a visit to President Lincoln's tomb.

On Sunday, Dole and Kemp are scheduled to hold a rally at an old football stadium in Buffalo before heading to Pittsburgh.

New Poll Numbers

A Newsweek poll shows Dole significantly closing the gap with Clinton, getting 42 percent to the president's 44 percent among 933 registered voters questioned. The 4 percent sampling error creates a statistically even race.

The survey was conducted Thursday night and Friday, so Dole may have benefited from the post-convention "bounce," often temporary, that is customary.

Dole drew more numerical parallels between his campaign and the number 15 at a Springfield, Illinois, rally Saturday. Dole has developed a kind of campaign fascination with the number, beginning with the 15 percent tax cut in his economic plan, and the fact that Kemp's NFL jersey sported number 15.

"He has 11 grandchildren and four children; that's 15," Dole said of Kemp. "Jack Kemp was nominated on the 15th. I picked a '15' to be my running mate."

For good measure, Dole noted that the year 1996 is significant because, after all, "nine and six is 15."

Dole, Kemp Spread GOP Word On Tax Cuts

White House Hopefuls Head To Pittsburgh

'Party Of Lincoln'

New Poll Numbers

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