Gore’s Talk to NAACP Strives to Mend Fences

Vice President Al Gore tried to improve the Administration’s strained relations with blacks Monday, telling the NAACP that it is time for new civil rights gains after a decade of fighting “the radical right.”

He was politely received by the audience. But the organization’s board chairman told the group that President Clinton had “kicked us in our teeth” by not sticking with the nomination of C. Lani Guinier at the Justice Department.

“The fact is, most of what we call progress was in place more than a decade ago,” Gore said in a speech at the annual meeting of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People. “The radical right, the purveyors of the politics of hate and division, have had their successes.”

The Administration is trying to improve relations with minority groups after enraging many of them when Clinton withdrew his nomination of Guinier for the top civil rights job at the Justice Department. Guinier, a black attorney and professor, is scheduled to address the NAACP today.

Just before Gore spoke, the NAACP presented its 1993 civil rights leadership award to Rep. Kweisi Mfume (D-Md.), chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. NAACP Board Chairman William F. Gibson praised Mfume for standing up to Clinton when he abandoned Guinier.

Gore made only a brief reference to the Administration’s search for a nominee to replace Guinier, whose name Clinton withdrew after saying he could not defend her views on minority representation.

“We intend to have a great attorney general for civil rights--one that you and we and our country can be proud of,” Gore said. “I promise you that.”