Gore aides say
Bradley is contrary
SALEM, N.H. - The debate over Willie Horton took another twist yesterday when aides to Vice President Al Gore charged that Bill Bradley's writings contradicted his criticism of the vice president. On page 370 of Bradley's 1996 book, ''Time Present, Time Past,'' the former New Jersey senator delved into the subject of Horton and the 1988 election, in which George Bush attacked Michael S. Dukakis over the Massachusetts furlough program. ''Oddly, the first politician to mention Horton (but without racializing it) was not Bush but Senator Al Gore,'' wrote Bradley, adding it was the Republicans who ''emphasized Horton's blackness.'' Earlier this week, however, Bradley said in a Boston Herald interview that ''Gore introduced (Horton) into the lexicon. ... I wouldn't have used Willie Horton.'' Bradley said Gore could have found other ways to show that Dukakis was soft on crime. ''The racial dimension to that - there were probably a lot of other people who fit into that category,'' he said. Chris Lehane, Gore's press secretary, said yesterday, ''Clearly Senator Bradley had a different view when he wasn't a candidate for president than he does now.'' (Globe Staff)
EPA: Ruling delay
not to protect Gore
WASHINGTON - The Environmental Protection Agency yesterday rebutted allegations that it is delaying a decision on whether to exempt California from rules requiring ethanol in gasoline blends to avoid hurting Vice President Al Gore in the Iowa caucuses. Farmers - Iowa farmers among them - see California as a vast new market for ethanol, a product of corn, and they are promising to make EPA's decision an issue in the general election in November if it rules against them. California requested the EPA decision last June, but agency officials said they are still waiting for some technical data they requested from California officials. (AP)
Democrats, GOP top
$25m in donations
WASHINGTON - The fund-raising arms of Senate Republicans and Democrats broke through the $25 million barrier in 1999, with the Democrats raising less but finishing the year with more money in the bank. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee reported it raised more than $25 million last year and had almost $11 million cash on hand on Dec. 31. The National Republican Senatorial Committee reported taking in almost $29 million but was left with less than $8 million in the bank after paying off a $4 million debt from the 1998 elections. (AP)
