Gore Accuses Bush of Iraqgate Cover-Up : Politics: He demands release of President’s note to Hussein before invasion of Kuwait. He assails White House for scrutiny of Clinton as a student.

Tennessee Sen. Al Gore quickly left the vice presidential debate behind Wednesday, launching a new attack on President Bush for “abuse of power” in pursuing rumors about Bill Clinton abroad while not policing his Administration’s own foreign policy dealings.

Fresh from the debate with his two rivals--Vice President Dan Quayle and Ross Perot running mate James B. Stockdale--the Democratic vice presidential nominee criticized the White House for directing senior State Department officials to ferret out information about Clinton’s foreign travels two decades ago as a student.

“At the same time this is going on, they are trying to cover up the Iraqgate scandal,” Gore told reporters as he left his Atlanta hotel for campaign rallies in Pittsburgh, Pa., and Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

Gore demanded that the White House release the complete text of the personal message Bush sent to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein just before the Iraqi dictator invaded Kuwait and triggered the Persian Gulf War. The Los Angeles Times reported on Tuesday that Bush sent a personal note to Hussein five days before the invasion, simultaneously warning and embracing him over his actions in the region, The Times reported.

“George Bush is presiding over a cover-up,” Gore charged, adding that various federal agencies are fighting among themselves in an attempt to divine the truth about U.S. loans to Iraq before the war.

“I do not believe it is a coincidence that one day after the head of the FBI told the chairman of the intelligence committee that he was going to investigate the Justice Department for the Iraqgate scandal, one day later the Justice Department announces it is launching an investigation of the head of the FBI, Mr. (William S.) Sessions,” Gore said.

“Why is it George Bush can focus all the investigative powers of his government on Bill Clinton’s travel records and personal history, but can’t get his own Cabinet agencies to tell the truth and provide documents to federal prosecutors working a major criminal investigation around billions of dollars in illegal loans to Iraq?” Gore asked in a statement released to reporters.

Not surprisingly, Gore declared himself the winner in the vice presidential debate, saying he topped Quayle, his main rival.

“I think the shrill, smear campaign by Dan Quayle just fell of its own weight,” he said.

As for Quayle’s post-debate contention that Gore failed to protect Clinton’s honor and integrity, Gore repeated his argument from the debate that George Bush has broken his promises. In doing so, he again stopped short of offering an iron-clad vouchsafe for Clinton’s integrity.

“As I said in the debate, remember George Bush is the one who said, ‘Read my lips, no new taxes,’ and then claimed he would be the environmental President, claimed he would be the education President, has broken all of those promises and has shown he is not worthy of the trust of the American people,” Gore said.

POLITICAL FUROR: Leading Democrats in Congress demand an investigation of probe of Clinton. A24