Dukakis, Bentsen Stress Issues of Future

Fighting off Republican attempts to tie them to discredited parts of the Democrats’ past, Democratic nominees Michael S. Dukakis and Lloyd Bentsen reached Monday for two symbols of the political future--children and space.

Dukakis, surrounded by small children at a Massachusetts health care center, rejected Reagan’s charge that the Democrats are hiding from “the ‘L word’ . . . ‘liberal’ ” by trying to steal Republican family values. “I thought those were American values,” Dukakis said, adding that “the L word in this campaign is ‘leadership.’ ”

Bentsen, meanwhile, campaigning in Texas, announced that, if the Democrats win, he will head a White House council Dukakis plans to create to “reinvigorate our space program.” The move is deliberately reminiscent of President John F. Kennedy’s decision to put Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson in charge of the race to the moon in the early 1960s.

Billions for Texas Economy

Johnson’s involvement in the space race brought billions of dollars to the Texas economy, making space programs a lastingly popular issue in that key state.

Taking his own jabs at the Republicans gathered in New Orleans, Dukakis accused the GOP of being unwilling to talk about issues of concern to American families.

“I haven’t heard a word in the last several days about the 38 million Americans who don’t have health insurance,” Dukakis said. “I haven’t heard a word about decent affordable housing for young families who ought to have the right to own their own house. I haven’t heard a word about the increase in the interest rate last week that will make it impossible for 4 million American families at least to buy their own home.”

Health care provided the centerpiece for Dukakis’ day as he toured central Massachusetts celebrating what he has proclaimed as the “greatest achievement” of his three terms as governor, the universal health care program designed to guarantee health insurance to all Massachusetts residents.

Element of Plan to Begin

The state is the first in the nation to provide such a guarantee. The first part of the new plan to take effect, called CommonHealth, begins this summer. The state Department of Public Welfare estimates that CommonHealth will cost $65 million this year and next and will benefit up to 25,000 people.

Citing the Massachusetts model, Dukakis has made his call for national health insurance a key part of his presidential campaign. But he acknowledged that he is still unable to detail how such a plan would work nationally and he repeatedly has declined to estimate the cost.

Similarly, Dukakis and Bentsen refused to put a price tag on their joint pledge Monday to “support an all-out effort to restore American leadership in exploring the universe.” The only specific program the two mentioned in a joint statement was a manned space station, which the Reagan Administration also has supported.

Several Purposes Served

The space issue serves several purposes for the Democrats. It should be popular in Texas, particularly in Houston, home of the Johnson Space Center, which Bentsen toured Monday morning. Several other major states, like California, have large aerospace and high-technology industries, and the Democrats hope that a strong commitment to space exploration will help with those areas.

The issue also is calculated to link Dukakis and Bentsen in the public mind with Kennedy and Johnson, a far more popular duo than Jimmy Carter and Walter F. Mondale, whose image the Republicans would like to tie to the current Democratic ticket.

At each stop on his campaign trail Monday, Bentsen recalled for his audiences “the excitement over the space program during Jack Kennedy’s Administration” and pledged to restore that sense of enthusiasm if he and Dukakis are elected.

Finally, the Democrats hope that the issue of space will help solidify an image they have been trying to convey--that Democrats are talking not about the past, but about the country’s future.

Bob Drogin reported from Massachusetts and David G. Savage from Houston.