GOP Contenders Bring Out the Harsh Words, Big Hitters

Former President George Bush returned to the campaign trail for his son Saturday, even as Sen. John McCain of Arizona denounced the cascade of big-name endorsements for Texas Gov. George W. Bush as a sign of “panic” in the Republican establishment.

With most polls showing McCain and Bush locked in a virtual dead heat just three days before the pivotal New Hampshire primary, the two men drew sharper lines of distinction before some of the largest crowds of the campaign season.

Without mentioning McCain by name, Bush amplified his recent criticism that the senator’s tax cut plan “mimicked” the budget blueprints of the Clinton administration.

“The Republican Party must have a nominee who’s able to take the case in the fall, that doesn’t sound like [Vice President] Al Gore but in fact stands in contrast to Al Gore when it comes to cutting taxes on working people,” Bush declared at a rally of 1,000 people at a restaurant in Portsmouth.

About the same time, halfway across the state in Raymond, McCain countered, “Everybody knows I’m the anti-Clinton. And maybe some people are saying [Bush] is not ready for prime time with that kind of charge.”

The harsh words reflected the high stakes in the last hours before the vote. With Bush holding a substantial lead in national polls and solid advantages in the next key states on the calendar, most GOP analysts believe McCain has to win here Tuesday to seriously threaten the front-runner.

The highlight of Bush’s day was a brief afternoon rally where he was lauded by his mother, his father, two brothers, a sister and assorted nieces and nephews.

“We were just sitting in Washington and said, ‘We got to go up,’ ” Barbara Bush told the candidate’s best audience to date, some 1,500 cheering supporters at an afternoon rally that featured the Bellamy Brothers, a country pop band. “So we just want you to know that we are so excited to see you all here. . . . Thank you for all you’re doing for my boy.”

In some respects, calling on the folks is a calculated risk for Bush. On one hand, not everyone likes his father, who was rocked by a surprisingly strong protest vote for Patrick J. Buchanan here in the 1992 GOP primary. On the other hand, Bush has spent his life living down the rap that he’s a daddy’s boy with few ideas of his own.

Between “Let Your Love Flow” and “Redneck Girl,” before a crowd decked out in straw hats and cowboy boots, a battalion of Bushes bounded to the temporary stage on the indoor tennis courts of a Milford health club: George W. and wife Laura; brothers Marvin and Neil and their wives; sister Dorothy Koch and her husband; and then the main event.

“To say that Barbara and I are thrilled to be here is the understatement of the year,” said the beaming former president. “I’m proud of our son,” he continued. “And this boy, this son of ours, is not going to let you down. He’s going to go all the way and serve you with great honor, all the way.”

Bush has tapped his family members before, just never all in one place and at such a crucial time. Mom and Dad have stumped separately in eight states. “My family gives me strength,” Bush told the cheering crowd. “My family gives me love.”

Steve Forbes, hoping to attract conservative votes and stay viable after Tuesday’s primary, is running one radio ad that questions Bush’s commitment to the anti-abortion cause and a second that accuses him of trying to “straddle” such issues as taxes and spending. That ad echoes a devastating ad Bush’s father ran here in 1988 that branded Bob Dole as “Sen. Straddle.”

Forbes resumed his attacks on Bush while on the stump as well.

“You’ve got to be either pro-life or pro-abortion,” Forbes said Saturday. “You can’t say you’re pro-life and not make a commitment to a pro-life running mate, not make a commitment to pro-life judges, not make a firm commitment on keeping a pro-life plank in the platform . . . and not make a firm commitment to work to overturn Roe vs. Wade. People don’t respect you when you try to straddle a fundamental issue like that.”

Bush was also in McCain’s sights Saturday as the senator kept up a frenetic schedule of town meetings. In the morning, he drew several hundred enthusiastic supporters to a high school in Raymond. Afterward, talking to reporters, McCain dismissed the succession of big-name Republicans--capped Friday by former New Hampshire Gov. John H. Sununu--who have endorsed Bush this week.

“The establishment is obviously in a state of extreme distress, if not panic, because they know I will break the iron triangle of money, lobbyists and legislation,” McCain said.

Later, at an even more crowded town meeting in Windham--the audience packed four deep against the walls--McCain forcefully criticized Bush’s tax plan and opposition to campaign finance reform. “Gov. Bush is out there raising money; I’m going to be out there raising hell, because we’re going to stop these special interests.”

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Times staff writers Anne-Marie O’Connor and Janet Wilson contributed to this story.