The Nation : Dukakis Defends Trust

Massachusetts Gov. Michael S. Dukakis, a Democratic presidential candidate, defended the arms-length attitude he has to a family trust that, according to a Federal Election Commission filing, had until August, 1986, included stocks in at least eight firms doing business in South Africa. “I made it very clear from the beginning that the bank was to manage that trust and I did not want to be consulted, nor did I want to participate in decisions as to what investment would be made,” Dukakis told a Boston news conference. Dukakis said he had been unaware of the trust holdings but had asked the trustee, State Street Bank & Trust Co., “some time ago” to make sure no stock was held in companies with links to South Africa.