Scores Reagan, Invokes Kennedy Image : Democratic Gov. Dukakis Opens Run for Presidency

On a whirlwind tour through the tulip-dotted snow of New England and the sunshine of Georgia and Iowa, Massachusetts Gov. Michael S. Dukakis officially began his uphill run for President Wednesday, touting the need for competence and integrity at a time of scandal.

Dukakis, who announced his intention to seek the Democratic nomination last month, invoked the image of the late President John F. Kennedy and attacked President Reagan for the Iran- contra scandal and other policies.

At subsequent made-for-TV stops in Boston, Atlanta and Des Moines, Dukakis gave virtually the same speech before crowds of enthusiastic supporters.

Pledging “not only to enforce the law but also to obey it,” the 53-year-old governor said the American people “deserve better than the sight of . . . an Administration that seems to need its own set of special prosecutors . . .

“They deserve a President who knows what’s going on and knows what he’s doing.”

Contras, ‘Star Wars’

He also said people “don’t deserve secret wars cooked up by armchair Rambos” or “wars in space”--references to Dukakis’ opposition to aiding Nicaraguan rebels or developing a “Star Wars” missile defense system

Instead of “a shooting war in Nicaragua,” the liberal Dukakis called for “a war against poverty and injustice and exploitation throughout Latin America.”

He acknowledged he is “struggling up a hill or two” in what he, the son of Greek immigrants, likened to an ancient Greek marathon. But he said he welcomed tests of “character and competence” that voters will administer next year, beginning with the Iowa caucuses, the New Hampshire primary and the Super Tuesday spate of Southern primaries.

Dukakis, one of at least eight Democrats expected to make the race, also was able in one breath to promote his own record of accomplishment as governor, zing Democratic front-runner Gary Hart as the candidate of new ideas and evoke memories of a famous Kennedy line at his 1960 inauguration.

Record as Governor

“Ask more than whether we have new ideas. Ask whether we have already put new ideas to work,” implored Dukakis, whose administration has presided over a booming state economy and has won praise for innovations in economic development, welfare reform, income tax enforcement and housing.

A new Boston Herald poll of Democratic voters showed Dukakis tied with Hart in New Hampshire at 32% but running fifth in Iowa at 3%.

Dukakis received a boost at a noontime rally on Boston Common from home state Democratic Sens. John Kerry and Edward M. Kennedy, brother of the assassinated President.

Kennedy, citing the state’s prosperity under Dukakis, said that “the citizens of Massachusetts have not felt this good about their government since the Mayflower Compact.”

Kerry Offers Praise

Kerry said that “as Irangate unfolds, we know that of all the candidates, Mike Dukakis is the candidate of integrity, competence and hands-on administrative ability.”

Noting the surprise snowfall that hit the area Tuesday night--nearly smothering red tulips on Boston Common--Kerry quipped:

“Just before John Kennedy was sworn in, it snowed. Mike Dukakis just wanted to get a head start on the process.”