Bush Tax Plan a Boon to Bush, Dukakis Says : Republican, in Switch, Rebuts Racist Charge

After months of forcing his opponent on the defensive, George Bush was pushed into that role Monday, compelled to say he is not spreading lies or stirring up racial friction.

With just 15 days left in the long presidential campaign, Republican Bush finally seemed to feel the sting of Michael S. Dukakis’ complaints and a new round of Democratic TV ads.

“Signs are showing in the opposition camp of desperation--using ads that accuse us of lying,” Bush began his uncharacteristic and unexpected statement here before launching into his speech to the Waterbury Chamber of Commerce.

He insisted that two longstanding themes of the GOP campaign--that Dukakis is weak on crime and national defense--are true, and are being presented fairly in his campaign.

“The record on that furlough program . . . is no lie,” Bush said. “The record on (Dukakis) opposition to these essential military programs is no lie. And we have complete documentation for those who want to see it.

“Not because it’s false but because he is weak on crime and defense.”

In one of his few campaign visits to New England since the primaries, Bush also faced an unusually hostile crowd reception Monday.

Many Unfriendly

Under rainy skies in Portland, Me., Bush faced a crowd of 1,200--half of whom were unfriendly and noisy about it. Many chanted at Bush, “No more lies!” In Connecticut and in Williston, Vt., the crowds were smaller and friendlier.

Bush’s remarks threatened to overshadow what was to have been a final campaign thrust on a reliable theme: the economy.

“Are you better off now than you were . . . . ?” Bush asked.

This was the signature slogan Ronald Reagan used so devastatingly against the Democrats in 1980 and 1984. And Bush has been carefully squirreling it away for his finale in the 1988 campaign.

Accompanied by charts and a supporting sheaf of statistics, Bush noted that inflation is down, interest rates are down, taxes are down and employment and average income are up.

”. . . The answer is a clear yes. We are better off as a nation,” Bush said.

But Dukakis’ new hard-hitting ads targeting the tone and substance of the GOP campaign were also on Bush’s mind.

Dukakis has complained that all the attention given Massachusetts’ prisoner furloughs ignored the existence of a federal furlough program. A new Dukakis advertisement noted that convicted heroin dealer Angel Medrano was on weekend furlough when he “raped and murdered Patsy Pedrin, a pregnant mother of two.” The Dukakis ad closes by saying: “The real story about furloughs is that George Bush has taken a furlough from the truth.”

Seen as Unique

Bush has repeatedly said that what separates the Massachusetts program from others is that it alone in the nation permitted the furlough of murderers serving life without parole.

Another Dukakis commercial shows him watching a Bush ad that ridicules the Democratic candidate’s position in opposition to major weapons programs. Dukakis snaps the television off and expresses disgust. “Full of lies and he knows it!” Dukakis says.

“If he really wants to talk about lies, let’s go back to our recent debate,” said Bush, reading from notes before the Chamber of Commerce.

In the Los Angeles debate, Dukakis denied that as governor he “raided” Massachusetts’ state pension funds to balance his budget.

“Well, that’s flat-out false,” Bush declared Monday. “And he knows it.”

Bush also responded to charges made Sunday by Democratic vice presidential candidate Lloyd Bentsen and the Rev. Jesse Jackson, that Bush is injecting racism into the campaign.

‘Rather Ugly Symbol’

Jackson, in particular, complained of the GOP campaign focusing on the crimes of Willie Horton. Jackson called it a “rather ugly, race-conscious” symbol.

Horton, who is black, was released on furlough from a Massachusetts prison and later raped a woman and assaulted her fiance in Maryland.

“There isn’t any racism,” Bush responded Monday as he spoke to a small group of reporters aboard his Air Force plane. “It’s absolutely ridiculous. And everybody sees this as some kind of desperation move.”

Bush let fly his own charge of racism. After all, he said, the Dukakis furlough commercials highlight the crimes of Angel Medrano.

“Is that racism against Hispanics? That’s what I think,” Bush said.

Later, at a picture-taking ceremony with a dozen Democrats who defected to his campaign, Bush was asked why he was now departing from his usual standoffishness and responding directly to Dukakis.

“I broke an old tradition with that, didn’t I,” he said, spinning on his heel and walking away without answering.

One Republican close to the campaign suggested that Bush was motivated by concern with appearing overly complacent in these final two weeks. “There is a big fear about just playing ball control at the end while Dukakis is sharpening up his message,” this Republican said.

Staff writer James Gerstenzang contributed to this story.