Democrats Reject GOP Plan for Four Clinton-Dole Debates

Republican Bob Dole wants to meet President Clinton in an unprecedented four one-hour debates, but that proposal met a quick rebuff from Clinton representatives Thursday as debate negotiations between the two camps began.

In a session that excluded an indignant representative of Ross Perot’s Reform Party, Republican negotiators told their Democratic counterparts they wanted four debates between Dole and Clinton rather than the three proposed by an independent commission on presidential debates. They also want to increase the number of vice presidential debates from one to two.

The Dole aides suggested adding Cleveland and Detroit to debate sites that include St. Louis, Hartford, St. Petersburg and San Diego.

But Democrats rejected the plan that would also pare each debate to 60 minutes from a proposed 1 1/2 hours. The Dole proposal “would mean more debates, but less debating,” said one Democratic official involved in the negotiations.

Former South Carolina Gov. Carroll A. Campell Jr., the top negotiator for Dole, said Clinton is “someone who could charm the birds out of the trees. We would be hard pressed to understand why the president would not want to debate Bob Dole one-on-one four times.”

Thursday’s session, held at a Washington law firm, is to be followed by a second meeting early next week after the two sides hear the final recommendations for the debate schedule and its participants from the Commission on Presidential Debates. The independent debate panel is headed by the former chairs of the Democratic and Republican parties.

The panel is expected on Monday to offer its suggestions on the most closely watched issue--whether the forums should include Reform Party presidential candidate Perot.

Perot’s Reform Party sent out an Internet bulletin Thursday evening urging supporters to contact the debate commission to call for Perot’s inclusion.

When Perot aide Russell Verney showed up to press the candidate’s case, he was welcomed by the Democrats. But the Republicans rejected Verney’s participation in the meeting.

Campbell said the GOP’s insistence on limiting the debates to the major-party nominees “is based on a belief that only Bill Clinton and Bob Dole are viable candidates for the presidency.”