POLITICS 88 : Upbeat Dukakis May Win Enough States Today to Hurt Rivals Badly

Appearing upbeat and increasingly confident, Democratic presidential candidate Michael S. Dukakis finished his Super Tuesday campaigning with a rally here Monday night after a three-day blitz of 12 states.

“I feel very good,” the Massachusetts governor said in an interview aboard his chartered jet Monday. “I hope we’re going to get a big lift. Things are happening.”

What is happening, top aides say, is that Dukakis appears positioned to win enough states and delegates today to deliver a severe blow to either or both of his chief rivals, Missouri Rep. Richard A. Gephardt and Tennessee Sen. Albert Gore Jr.

A month ago, Dukakis’ best hope was to hold the two more conservative candidates to a draw in the South. But as Gephardt and Gore fought bitterly for the same middle-income, blue-collar moderates, Dukakis’ well-funded campaign had a clear shot at the region’s Northeastern retirees, urban liberals and Mexican-Americans.

Ads Countered Charges

Aides say Dukakis’ negative TV ads effectively countered his opponents’ charges in the bruising battle of commercials. And to their surprise, the economy appeared to overshadow defense and foreign policy, Dukakis’ perceived weak points, as Super Tuesday’s chief campaign issue.

“It’s amazing,” said one top adviser. “Everything’s breaking our way.”

Ever since winning the New Hampshire primary three weeks ago, Dukakis has focused most of his campaigning in Super Tuesday’s “crown jewels,” delegate-rich Florida and Texas.

On Monday, campaign aides flatly predicted that they will win in Florida. They cite particular strength on the “condo coast,” a 40-mile stretch of condominiums and shuffleboard courts in Dade and Broward counties, where about 175,000 Democrats will vote today.

“We’ve felt a tremendous surge in the last 10 days,” said Steve Rosenfeld, state campaign director. “We’re going for a win.”

Important Endorsement

Dukakis got a boost early Monday when he beat his Democratic rivals in a hard-fought battle for the endorsement of 74-year-old political boss Annie Ackerman.

A front-page story in the Wall Street Journal last week identified the wheelchair-bound, great-grandmother as the “queen of the condo commandos” for her ability to turn out and control 90% of the voters in her district.

Dukakis “is a mensch ,” Ackerman told about 800 people at the Point East condominiums, using Yiddish for “sensible, responsible person.” “He’s a person of integrity, a person of honor, a person who gets things done.”

Dukakis called it “the best introduction” of his entire campaign. Then, countering with the Yiddish word nachus , or joy in someone’s achievements, he quoted his father-in-law’s rhyming slogan, “ Nachus for Dukakis.” The crowd cheered.

Dukakis aides appeared less confident of their showing in Texas, which will send 197 delegates to the convention. But they said the campaign’s tracking polls showed Dukakis still apparently leading Democrats in the Lone Star state, mostly based on his popularity with Latinos in South Texas.

Hope for Clear Lead

Aides hope a victory in the two largest Super Tuesday states would make Dukakis a clear front-runner.

Dukakis and his wife, Kitty, were to fly home to Boston late Monday night for a final series of TV interviews. In all, he was scheduled for more than two dozen TV interviews by satellite on the final campaign day, including at least one in every Super Tuesday state.

Dukakis should win easily at home in Massachusetts and neighboring Rhode Island. Aides also hope to win other non-Southern Super Tuesday contests in Maryland, Hawaii and Washington state.

On Saturday, Dukakis cut short a trip to Seattle and Spokane to add a quick airport rally in Boise, Ida., after a state poll found support in the state.

Dukakis has mostly avoided campaigning in the Deep South. But starting Thursday, the campaign began, or significantly increased, its purchase of TV commercials in Louisiana, North Carolina, Arkansas and Kentucky after polls showed surprising strength in those states as well.

Ads Run in 11 States

In all, Dukakis ads are running in 11 of the 20 Super Tuesday states.

Dukakis flew to Little Rock, Ark., Saturday afternoon to appear with Gov. Bill Clinton at a rally. On Sunday, aides hastily added a brief airport rally in Louisville, Ky., after a local poll reported Dukakis with 20% of the Democrats despite almost no campaign presence.

Dukakis also flew to Plains, Ga., on Sunday to “talk a little politics and a little policy,” as he put it, with former President Jimmy Carter.

In a press conference on the Carters’ driveway, the last Democratic President said he was not endorsing any candidate. But Carter said he and Dukakis share “a great deal of compatibility” because of their experience as governors.

Asked if Dukakis’ lack of foreign policy experience was a problem, Carter smiled and said: “I don’t have any concern about that at all. It’s also true that those who serve in Congress have a very narrow focus.”

With the Illinois primary scheduled for next Tuesday, March 15, Dukakis will hold his Super Tuesday rally in Chicago tonight. Dukakis expects an uphill battle against favorite son Sen. Paul Simon and the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who is based in Chicago.

In the meantime, after the last three days’ seeming nonstop series of parades, rallies and speeches across the country, exhausted aides say Super Tuesday could not come fast enough.

“I can’t wait,” said Debbie Willhite, a Connecticut resident who ran the campaign’s Atlanta office. “I get to go home on Wonderful Wednesday.”