POLITICS 88 : CAMPAIGN ’88 : Defiant Dole Vows to Hang In After Illinois

A defiant Bob Dole vowed Sunday to continue his faltering drive for the Republican nomination no matter how poorly he fares in the Illinois primary on Tuesday.

“Our new theme song when we leave here is going to be ‘On Wisconsin,”’ Dole said, referring to that state’s April 5 primary. “We’re going to hand out sheet music today and road maps to all the traveling press.”

The new statement of resolve came as Illinois polls showed Vice President George Bush headed toward another huge victory over Dole on Tuesday. And it contrasted with mounting indications, some fueled by the Kansas senator himself in recent days, that an Illinois loss might drive him from the race.

But interviewed on CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday, Dole made clear he was of no mind to quit. “We’re going full bore,” he said, adding that staffers had recently been dispatched to Wisconsin and Connecticut, both of which hold primaries in the next few weeks.

“Sooner or later,” Dole said, “the voters in one of these states are going to say, ‘hold it a minute, we’re about to nominate a candidate who can’t win in November. We better turn around and vote for Bob Dole.’ ”

Dole’s national campaign chairman, William E. Brock III, insisted that the comments came as no surprise to him, but Brock could barely mask a lack of enthusiasm. When asked if he relished the idea of Dole hanging on after Tuesday, Brock replied: “He’s the candidate. My job is to help him get there.”