CAMPAIGN ’88 : 15,000 RSVP’s?
The League of Women Voters said Monday it expects an estimated 15,000 phone calls to flood the campaign headquarters of Dukakis and Republican presidential nominee George Bush, pushing the 1988 presidential and vice presidential nominees to take part in league-sponsored debates this fall.
The calls were being made from all parts of the country by league members and others who “understand the importance of nonpartisan presidential debates,” Nancy M. Neuman, the group’s president, said Monday in Washington.
The league has sponsored debates for the past three presidential elections but this year faces competition from the Democratic and Republican parties, which have announced four debates of their own.
“The shameless attempt by the two parties to ‘steal’ the debates threatens more than the league,” Neuman earlier wrote in a letter to league member. “It threatens the voters.”
Neither the Bush nor Dukakis campaigns have said they would participate in the league-sponsored debates, the first of which is set for Sept. 8 in Birmingham, Ala.
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