Reagan, in ‘George and I’ Broadcast, Promises to Stump for Bush

President Reagan promised Saturday to end his Administration by playing “an active role in the coming campaign” and reinforced that pledge by sharing with Vice President George Bush the credit for positions he has taken as President.

Reagan, who was to fly to New Orleans today in preparation for his appearance Monday evening before a Republican National Convention set to nominate Bush to be his successor, used the occasion of his weekly radio talk to link Bush’s views with his own and to counter criticism from the Democratic opposition headed by Massachusetts Gov. Michael S. Dukakis.

“While they talk, we deliver,” Reagan said of the Democrats, and he cited politically significant, recent policy positions in which he said Bush had concurred.

Reagan concluded the five-minute talk from the Oval Office with a reminder that he would “be addressing the Republican convention on Monday . . . and taking an active role in the coming campaign.”

Stake in Election

“Even so,” the 77-year-old, two-term President added: “my name won’t appear on any ballot this fall. What’s at stake for me in this election is my love for America and my dreams for her future.

“And that’s what my support for Vice President Bush comes down to. You see, George Bush understands that the question for America today is not what’s different, but what’s next.”

Reagan defended his Aug. 3 veto of the $299.6-billion military authorization bill sent to him by the Democratic-run 100th Congress. He said the measure, which would have trimmed funds for his “Star Wars” space-based anti-missile system and augmented funds for the conventional armed forces, “would have set back our nation’s defenses severely.”

“I won’t stand for that,” Reagan said. “Neither will George Bush. It’s up to Congress to come up with a new bill, one that strengthens our defenses instead of weakening them, and strengthens our hand still further in dealing with the Soviets.”

Stand on Nicaragua

As for Nicaragua, Reagan said: “The leadership of the other (Democratic) party advocates policies of disengagement and unconcern, policies that would surely permit the Communists to consolidate their power,” while “George Bush and I” believe the United States has “a high moral duty” to aid the anti-Sandinista forces.

Reagan went on to say that “George Bush and I” have supported “fair housing” measures stronger than the one that passed Congress last week. Then, after noting that his own activities last week included the signing of measures to compensate Japanese-Americans who were interned during World War II and to aid drought-stricken U.S. farms, he answered Democratic criticisms of his Administration’s economic policies.

“They talk as if the country were in some kind of recession, if not an outright depression,” he said, “but the truth is just the opposite. Since George Bush and I put our economic policies in place, we’ve witnessed the longest peacetime expansion in American history.”

Stresses Trade Policy

Reagan said he and Bush aim to “open America and the world to still greater trade and economic growth.” He cited the progress in Congress of legislation to facilitate a new trade agreement with Canada, as well as enactment of a massive trade bill that replaced an earlier version he had vetoed. The slightly revised trade measure, he said, “more closely reflects Bush’s and my emphasis on world trade that is both free and--yes--fair.”