Bush, Gore, Duel Over Policy, Credibility

Nov. 1, 2000 -- Al Gore and George W. Bush are mixing policy criticisms with personal barbs as polls show the Republican presidential candidate holding a slim lead.

Campaigning in Florida today, the vice president delivered his most stinging critique to date of his rival’s plan to reform Social Security by allowing younger workers to invest a portion of their payroll taxes in the stock market.

“I don’t think it’s right to play games with Social Security or pit young against old,” he told supporters at an arena in Kissimmee. “My opponent talks about a commitment to today’s retirees, but … soothing words don’t pay the rent.”

Bush, meanwhile, insists the $1 trillion transition cost for his proposed Social Security investment accounts will not necessitate a reduction in benefits for current or near retirees. He accuses Gore of using scare tactics.

“A promise this nation has made is a promise we’ll keep,” Bush said at an afternoon rally in Minneapolis. “He’s still trying to scare seniors into the voting booth. Not this time and not this year!”

Gore Camp: Bush Not ‘Up to Job’

Social Security has been a central issue of the 2000 campaign, but Gore aides acknowledge the vice president is focusing on it now because, they say, it is driving unease about whether Bush is “up to the job” of president.

Late tonight, the Gore campaign released a new television ad explicitly arguing that he is not.

The ad skewers Bush’s Texas record on health care and the environment as well as his positions on Social Security and tax relief.

“He squanders the surplus on a tax cut for those making over 300,000 dollars,” says the announcer. “Is he ready to lead America?”

That ad will soon begin airing in key battleground states and Gore campaign officials say surrogates will continue to make the case that Bush is not ready to be president.

The Florida KeyFlorida is a must-win state for Bush and the Gore campaign is pulling out all of the stops in its effort to pull out an upset win there. Both the vice president and Lieberman stumped in the Sunshine State today. Their campaign will spend some $2 million there in this final week of the race.

Months ago, Bush seemed all but assured of winning Florida, but a recent Los Angeles Times poll showed the Republican candidate with an uncomfortably narrow four-point lead in the state. The Texas governor’s running mate, Dick Cheney, also campaigned across Florida today, trying to widen Bush’s lead.

Joining the former defense secretary as he stumped through three Florida cities was retired Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, who joined the war of words over Social Security by taping a phone message on behalf of the Bush campaign.

“Al Gore has decided to try and scare us seniors,” Schwarzkopf says in the automated call being made to voters in Florida and other swing states. “I can promise you that George W. Bush will never do anything to hurt seniors or threaten Social Security. Don’t be fooled by scare tactics.”

One of the “scare tactics” the retired general refers to is a phone message produced by the Democratic National Committee in which actor Ed Asner says, “George W. Bush has a proposal that would undermine Social Security, even scuttling current benefits.”

That call is no longer being made, but the Gore campaign is running a number of television ads that warn voters, “The Bush plan does not add up” and that it “would undermine Social Security.”

After campaigning in Florida, Gore was set to continue on to Pennsylvania, also a tossup state, where he will again emphasize his Social Security message. Florida and Pennsylvania have more senior citizens than any other states in the nation.

The Ground War

In these closing days of the campaign, a candidate’s location is as important as his message. Bush was campaigning in Washington, Minnesota and Iowa. His first two destinations were traditionally Democratic-leaning states where Bush has fought Gore to a draw in statewide polls, thanks in part to the candidacy of Green Party nominee Ralph Nader, who is draining Gore’s support from his liberal ideological base.

In addition to Florida, Lieberman also campaigned today in the perennial battleground of Missouri as well as President Clinton’s home state of Arkansas. Meanwhile, Cheney will invade Gore’s home state of Tennessee, where Bush has also pulled even with Gore in recent polls. In these closing days of the campaign, a candidate’s location is as important as his message.

A state-by-state ABCNEWS analysis shows the Republican with an advantage on the electoral map as well: Bush is leading by a substantial margin in 25 states accounting for 213 of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House, while Gore is well-positioned in 13 states totaling 182 votes.

With the election less than a week away, there are 13 states representing 143 electoral votes still in play.

As both tickets vie for the same handful of swing statesn the candidates are nearly crossing paths.

On Thursday, Bush and Lieberman will both campaign in Missouri (11 electoral votes), a perennial battleground, and Democratic-leaning Wisconsin (11); and Gore and Cheney will both make appearances in the tossup state of Pennsylvania (23). The vice president is also set to stump in New Mexico (5) on Thursday.

So Happy Together

As his opponent hammered his Social Security plan, Bush was pitching his proposal to reduce federal income taxes by $1.3 trillion over nine years.

“When you have a surplus, it means our people are over-taxed, that your government is over-charging you,” he said in Minneapolis. “I’m going to do something about it!”

“[Gore] proposes more new spending than Bill Clinton did,” Bush added, “and more spending than Walter Mondale and Michael Dukakis combined — that’s a lot of spending.”

The GOP nominee is campaigning under a banner of “Bringing America Together” and is striking a bipartisan tone on the stump, even as he labors to paint his opponent as a big-government liberal.

“I will work with both Republicans and Democrats to get the people’s business done, to rid Washington of its bitterness and to set a new and constructive tone,” he said.

This morning, Gore mocked his opponent’s feel-good message.

“If you want someone who smiles and looks the other way while special interests have their way, the I’m not your man,” he said in Kissimmee. “But if you want someone who knows how to fight for your interests and has the experience to win those battles on your behalf, then I ask for your support.”

“I can say ‘No’ to the special interests with a smile,” he added, drawing laughs from the partisan crowd.

The latest ABCNEWS tracking poll, released tonight, gives Bush a 49 percent to 45 percent lead over Gore, nationwide.

ABCNEWS’ John Berman and Dana Hill contributed to this report.