GOP Senator Urges Tower to Exit; Bush Mining Votes : Pressler Expresses Concerns

The Administration’s efforts to salvage John Tower’s nomination as defense secretary suffered a setback today when Republican Sen. Larry Pressler of South Dakota announced that he was “very much leaning against” confirmation and urged Tower to withdraw before a vote.

The President, meanwhile, launched a full-court press, meeting privately with a dozen swing Democrats and wavering Republicans in hopes of persuading them to back Tower.

Pressler said he was fearful that Tower would not be capable of cleaning up the Pentagon procurement system if confirmed and said he should withdraw.

Do Bush a ‘Favor’

“I think that (by withdrawing) he may very well be doing him (Bush) a favor in this case,” Pressler said.

White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater told reporters that there was “no chance whatsoever” of the President withdrawing the nomination.

“We’re going to fight it out as far as we can. We’ve convinced a lot of senators, and we hope to convince a lot more,” said Fitzwater, who refused to specify what senators had been won over.

With Democrats holding a 55-45 majority in the Senate, Republicans can ill-afford any defections from their own ranks if Bush is to prevail in the first high-stakes political showdown of his 5-week-old presidency.

Formal debate on the nomination is scheduled to open Wednesday, and senators are reading a confidential FBI report on the former Texas senator’s drinking habits, charges of womanizing and lucrative consulting contracts with military companies.

Bush invited several Democrats and Republicans to the White House for a series of one-on-one meetings to discuss the nomination.

Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell (D-Me.), who has not announced his position, did not talk with reporters as he left the White House. Sen. J. James Exon (D-Neb.) has said he expected Mitchell will oppose the nomination, which has failed thus far to attract the public support of any Democratic senator.

Early Morning Meetings

The President held early morning meetings with Sens. John B. Breaux (D-La.), J. Bennett Johnston (D-La.) and Dennis DeConcini (D-Ariz.).

Bush also scheduled individual meetings with Sen. John W. Warner (R-Va.), the ranking GOP member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Sens. Charles S. Robb (D-Va.), Lloyd Bentsen (D-Tex.) and Bill Bradley (D-N.J.).

Vice President Dan Quayle told a hastily called news conference that he believes that all 45 Republican senators, including Pressler, will vote for Tower. If five Democrats can be persuaded to vote for Tower, that would allow Quayle to cast the decisive, tie-breaking vote for the nominee.

Later today, Bush said he did not know whether he could win over senators who have indicated opposition to Tower, saying only that “I hope so.”

But with Tower sitting on his left in the Cabinet Room, the President said he had not heard anyone “challenge this man’s knowledge and his ability.”

“He’s the best to do the job that needs to be done,” Bush said.