ASHINGTON - The rhetorical fight for the Democratic presidential nomination escalated, as Al Gore called Bill Bradley a ''left-of-center insurgent,'' while Bradley suggested he would not stand much longer for the attacks.
In an interview, Vice President Gore, hoping to stimulate voter distrust of free-spending liberals, called Bradley's plan for universal health insurance a ''throwback to an earlier generation.''
''The Democratic Party has gained a lot of credit with voters over the last seven years for accepting fiscal responsibility,'' Gore said. ''That means paying attention to what happens to the budget surplus and not squandering it.''
Since the race for the Democratic presidential nomination tightened several weeks ago, Gore has made criticism of Bradley a central part of his campaign, and has repeatedly challenged the former New Jersey senator to debates.
Gore defended the criticism implied in his new ''I stayed and fought'' slogan - that Bradley is a quitter for leaving the Senate in 1997 and abandoning the battles with Congress's Republican majority.
He said the difference between Bradley and other Democratic senators who left that year, including four whose endorsements Gore now trumpets, is the others ''are not running for president and they're not saying that they're left-of-center insurgents that represent the true spirit of the Democratic Party.''
Responding to Gore's attacks, Bradley, a former professional basketball player, said yesterday: ''I'm also a competitor and been in enough games and competition to know you can take the elbows only so many times.''
Bradley said common sense and willingness to think long term best described his philosophy on issues.
Bradley said he found Gore's criticism of his departure from the Senate laughable, adding he tried to abide by the ideal set forth by Thomas Jefferson of a citizen-politician who would serve in government, depart for a time, and then return.
In the interview, Gore:
Called Russia's Boris Yeltsin an ''on-again, off-again'' president, but voiced confidence that a stable Russia will carry on despite corruption and crime.
Rejected Bradley's call for automatic, annual hikes in the minimum wage, indexed to the median wage. ''The president and the Congress should regularly increase the minimum wage with an eye to the circumstances that prevail at the time.'' Both Gore and Bradley favor a $1 increase in the $5.15 wage.
