Sununu Denies Blaming Predicament on Pro-Israel Groups : White House: The chief of staff calls the organizations’ leaders as he tries to smooth over a new and possibly damaging controversy.

White House Chief of Staff John H. Sununu, already on the defensive for his use of government and corporate aircraft, acted quickly Thursday to head off a new and potentially more serious controversy over comments that he reportedly made to associates blaming pro-Israeli groups for contributing to his recent troubles.

Sununu, saying he does not blame “anybody but myself” for the criticism he has received, sought to lay the matter to rest by placing a conference call to leaders of five prominent pro-Israeli organizations. The call came after Sununu sent a letter to Jewish leaders in which he tried to smooth over the “misperceptions of the past week.”

The moves were in response to growing criticism from pro-Israeli groups over Sununu’s alleged comments and a scathing column written by conservative William Safire, who accused Sununu of descending into “the gutter of bigotry” by trying to foist blame on Jewish leaders.

While his telephone call appeared to dispel the emotional debate for the moment, it was not clear how President Bush would react to the latest developments. Bush previously was said to be upset that Sununu had created the impression that the White House was not adhering to high ethical standards.

At issue Thursday were widespread reports that the chief of staff had been telling associates that the controversy over his travel was being stirred up by other Cabinet members, White House aides, the news media and pro-Israeli groups. Sununu reportedly accused the Jewish organizations of taking sides against him because he is of Lebanese descent.

Sununu reportedly denied these reports during a meeting with White House senior staff on Wednesday, and White House Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater on Thursday characterized the accounts from unnamed sources as “insidious.”

Meanwhile, the Forward, a Jewish weekly newspaper in New York City, reported that Sununu had played “an active, if behind-the-scenes role” in organizing a new Arab lobbying group. It said the group known as the Arab-American Council was formed to pursue items on the Arab agenda following the Persian Gulf War.

In his phone call to Jewish leaders, Sununu read a one-sentence statement saying: “As I told the White House senior staff yesterday, I am not blaming anybody but myself for the flurry of recent events nor am I engaging at all in what would be a very non-constructive effort to suggest any involvement by anyone or any groups in what has taken place or been reported.”

Jewish leaders who talked to Sununu later issued a brief joint statement saying that Sununu also had “expressed the hope that the constructive relationship between him and the Jewish community would continue.” They added that “the participants welcomed his statement and clarification.”

The group included Abe Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League of the B’nai B’rith, David Harris of the American Jewish Committee, Malcolm Hoenlein of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations, George Klein of the Republican Jewish Coalition and Mayer Mitchell of the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee.

In a letter received by Foxman and Hoenlein earlier in the day, Sununu said he valued his “good and productive working relationship” with them.

“In dealing with all the major Jewish organizations, I have always been very pleased with the openness and honesty of our frequent meetings and discussions,” he wrote. “We have operated in a spirit of cooperation and understanding. We have disagreed on substance from time to time, and I have found those debates to be helpful and informative.

“I value my relationship with the Jewish community and intend to continue working with all of you in an accessible and forthright manner. I know you share my concerns with the misperceptions of the past week and I appreciate the willingness of you and your colleagues to work together with me to put this issue to rest.”

It was the second time in less than a week that Sununu has been forced to defend himself against severe public criticism of his actions. Last Saturday, he issued a mildly apologetic statement acknowledging that “mistakes were made” earlier this month when he solicited a ride on a corporate jet in order to attend a GOP fund-raiser in Chicago.

Although the controversy over Sununu’s travels has occasionally angered the President and caused the chief of staff considerable embarrassment, its political impact was clearly more limited than the fallout from his reported remarks about Jewish groups.

In a statement issued prior to receiving Sununu’s call, Foxman described the reported remarks as “pure nonsense and mischief-making of the most dangerous kind.”

But Foxman did not take Sununu to task for his role in organizing the Arab-American Council. “We see no reason to criticize Mr. Sununu’s role as long as the new organization was not created to undermine the strong U.S.-Israel relationship, which has been a traditional component of the American national interest,” he said.

Meanwhile, Fitzwater reported that Sununu had received threats on his life as a result of some of his trips aboard government and corporate jets. He apparently was referring to a demonstration staged by AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP), an AIDS activist group, during Sununu’s recent commencement speech at New York University.