Dukakis Courts Jackson Forces, Reagan Democrats

Democratic presidential nominee Michael S. Dukakis headed off on a seven-state campaign swing Thursday, seeking support from two divergent groups: Ronald Reagan Democrats and Jesse Jackson loyalists.

But as the euphoria of last week’s Democratic National Convention wears off, the Massachusetts governor was forced to walk a delicate line between the two often-opposing groups--and he only partially succeeded.

Appealing to conservative middle-class and blue-collar Democrats, Dukakis spoke fervently of flag and family, God and country--emotional values Reagan exploited so well when he ran in 1980 and 1984, but which Dukakis has begun to emphasize only in the last week, starting at the convention in Atlanta.

What It’s All About

The election, the nominee told several hundred people at a lunchtime rally in an office park in Secaucus, N.J., “is about the things Americans talk about every night over the kitchen table, the things we worry about each time we look in the eyes of our children or grasp the hand of an older American or see a friend or a neighbor who’s just been laid off.”

Although aides had billed the speech as a “major address” on economic policy, Dukakis mostly re-emphasized broad promises of “investment, innovation and teamwork” to reinvigorate the American economy.

“I want to encourage business leaders to invest in the things that made their companies grow in the first place; they must take risks; they must produce high quality goods; they must aggressively seek out new markets; they must invest in new technology and training for their workers,” he said.

‘What Else Is New?’

“Everyone is for jobs and education,” scoffed one voter, John Anderson, a 28-year-old office worker who joined the crowd in brief, polite applause. “So, what else is new?”

Long dominated by Democrats on a state level, New Jersey has not voted for a Democratic President since 1964. Moreover, Gov. Thomas H. Kean will be the keynote speaker at the Republican National Convention in New Orleans next month, and claims a similar bust-to-boom state economy as Dukakis does in Massachusetts.

In a probable foretaste of the fall campaign, about 10 anti-gay and anti-abortion demonstrators jeered the candidate loudly through the speech, and followed him chanting as he shook hands in the crowd.

Later, at crowded downtown rally at Public Square in Cleveland, Dukakis supporters attempted to shout down a similar group of anti-abortion protesters, and tore up a sign with a swastika, as the governor spoke.

Crowd Cheers Repeatedly

In a reprise of last week’s success, the Cleveland crowd of more than 1,500 cheered repeatedly as Dukakis stressed his support for national health insurance, raising the minimum wage, job training for welfare mothers and a federal law to give workers 60 days’ notice before plant closings and major layoffs.

“He put his views up front,” said Daniel Akwei, 41, an accountant. “He wants us to understand what he wants to do.”

But Dukakis’ relations with Jackson resurfaced as a ticklish problem. Despite promises at the convention last week, he has yet to hire any of Jackson’s aides into state or national campaign positions.

Partially as a result, Dukakis met privately with top Jackson aides and supporters in New Jersey and Ohio, and planned additional meetings today and Saturday as he campaigns in Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Kentucky and North Carolina.

“We sought a meeting eyeball-to-eyeball,” said Sharpe James, mayor of Newark, N.J., after he led about 20 black Jackson supporters into a morning meeting with Dukakis.

All Smiles After Session

James, who publicly criticized the Dukakis forces earlier in the week for trying to impose an imported campaign organization, was all smiles after the session. “The meeting was perfect,” he said. “It was everything we could hope for.”

But Dukakis and his aides tried to sidestep repeated questions by reporters about Jackson’s reported attempt to arrange a meeting with the foreign minister of Iran to discuss the release of American hostages in Lebanon.

When Jackson reiterated on Wednesday his interest in opening discussions aimed at gaining the hostages’ release, Dukakis’ deputy issues director, James Steinberg, initially responded by saying: “We do not know any of the facts.” He later added that as a matter of policy, Dukakis does not favor “private citizens independently conducting foreign policy.”

Paul P. Brountas, Dukakis’ campaign chairman, told reporters Thursday afternoon that he had called Jackson Wednesday night to read him that statement, but he did not inquire further into the “facts” of Jackson’s initiative.

‘We’re Busy Campaigning’

Asked why not, Brountas responded, “we’re busy here campaigning,” but he declined further comment. Asked if he approved of Jackson’s move, he said, “it’s not a question of approving, or not approving,” then declined comment again.

Dukakis had much the same to say when he was interviewed via satellite by a Seattle TV station. “I don’t know the facts of this particular situation,” he repeated, “but as a general matter, private citizens should not try to conduct foreign policy.”