MES, Iowa - Al Gore sidestepped questions yesterday about George W. Bush's 1976 drunken-driving arrest, but seized on a comment that his Republican rival made about Social Security to challenge his judgment as a would-be president.
The vice president mocked Bush's statement Thursday that Democrats ''want the federal government controlling Social Security like it's some kind of federal program.''
''Yeaaah?'' he asked incredulously, drawing laughter at a rally in Kansas City. ''And a damn good one, too.'' Later, he asked students at Iowa State University, ''Do you want to entrust the Oval Office to somebody who doesn't even know that Social Security is a federal program?''
In both locations, and in a hastily prepared television ad, Gore said Bush made the comment because he has trouble explaining to senior citizens how he would preserve their retirement benefits, while also promising to let younger workers divert some of their Social Security payroll taxes to private investment accounts.
Analysts have pegged the cost of that proposal at $1 trillion, which Bush said recently would come from a $2.4 trillion projected surplus in the Social Security trust fund. Bush had previously pledged to preserve that entire surplus for paying the benefits of those in or near retirement.
''He's been put on the defensive about this because the people who understand how Social Security operates, and the families that know why it's so important to ensure the dignity of life for those in their later years, have tried to add the numbers up, and the numbers don't add up,'' Gore said at Penn Valley Community College in Kansas City.
Appropriating Bush's debate criticism of Gore, the vice president said ''1 trillion promised to two groups doesn't add up unless you're using what kind of math?''
The audience replied heartily , ''Fuzzy math.''
At Iowa State, Gore repeated the line and labeled Bush's proposal a ''cockamamie plan.''
The vice president's campaign also rushed out a television advertisement to air in Pennslyvania and Florida playing a clip of Bush's comment. The spot concludes, ''George Bush. Is he ready to lead America?''
The focus on the Social Security comment had a dual purpose. It highlights an issue that has given Gore traction in the closing days of the election in states with older populations, such as battlegrounds like Florida and Pennsylvania. It also was aimed at deflecting any criticism that the Gore campaign triggered the reports of the arrest or that he was seeking political advantage from it.
In an interview yesterday with CNN, Gore declined to comment on the news that Bush was arrested in Kennebunkport, Maine, in 1976 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol.
''I want to talk about the issues,'' the vice president said.
Gore spokesman Chris Lehane denied both Thursday night and again yesterday that the campaign had any involvement in the disclosure. A longtime Maine resident and graduate of Kennebunk High School, Lehane also rejected any speculation that he may have been involved in the story.
''We resent the outrageous and scurrilous and unsubstantiated allegations made by the Bush campaign,'' he said. ''We had absolutely nothing to do with this.''
While Gore and his staff showed restraint, US Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, stopped by a media workspace at Iowa State after Gore's rally to criticize Bush for not revealing the arrest himself. He said it highlighted the relatively short time that Bush has been in public life and the lack of scrutiny he has received.
''Maybe this raises the question, are there other things he hasn't told us about?'' Harkin said. ''The fact that he tried to cover it up and did not tell us about it says something about openness and honesty.''
