Reagan on Falwell: No Comment

President Reagan’s spokesman said today that Reagan was aware of the Rev. Jerry Falwell’s denunciation of South African Bishop Desmond Tutu as a “phony” but that the President will have no comment on the remark.

Spokesman Larry Speakes told reporters at the Century Plaza Hotel, where Reagan is staying, that the South African government is to blame for creating “a crisis of confidence.” He called on Tutu, whom the Administration indirectly criticized on Monday for refusing to meet with South African President Pieter Botha, to encourage a dialogue.