TLANTA - With Democratic presidential contender Bill Bradley temporarily sidelined for health reasons, Vice President Al Gore yesterday dropped attacks on his rival's health-care plan and instead took aim at Republicans for thinking that ''if the economy ain't broken, let's break it.''
Gore, who was here to launch a national effort to mobilize black voters for his campaign, was showcasing the breadth of his support among African-American movers and shakers in the hope that it will influence black voters, some of whom have been drawn to Bradley's message of racial inclusion.
Gore typically seizes such opportunities to draw distinctions between himself and Bradley, often saying that the former New Jersey senator's health care plan is too costly and would hurt blacks and Hispanics because it would end Medicaid.
But other than a passing reference to having fought against President Ronald Reagan's 1981 spending cuts, which Bradley voted for, Gore's only mention of his Democratic opponent yesterday was at the top of his remarks.
''I would like to say a word of gratitude for the news that my opponent, Senator Bradley is back on the campaign trail today,'' Gore said. ''That's good news. He's a good man, a great competitor. I look forward to continuing our discussion.''
Gore officials said Gore sidestepped criticism of Bradley not out of fear of antagonizing African-American voters, but in deference to concerns about his health. Bradley, who was hospitalized briefly in California on Friday because of an irregular heartbeat, yesterday said his health is fine and that his campaign will not be affected.
The South is key to Gore's strategy of wresting the nomination from Bradley, and as a Tennessee native, Gore is expected to do well there. But in a poll conducted last month by the University of Alabama that asked respondents in that state to choose a favorite in the Democratic presidential primary, 39 percent named Gore, compared with 32 percent for Bradley.
Among blacks, however, a recent poll by the Associated Press showed Gore leading Bradley 57 percent to 24 percent.
Mindful of the strength of the black voters in the South, who make up close to 50 percent of the vote in Georgia, for example, the vice president yesterday touted the Clinton-Gore administration's record that he said includes the most diverse Cabinet in history, an economy that has cut African-American unemployment rates in half, and a defense of affirmative action against Republican efforts to roll back the federal program.
''Anyone who says affirmative action is no longer needed because we've reached the promised land, has confused wilderness with Canaan,'' Gore said to wild applause. ''We fought for the black farmer. We have fought for the downtrodden, and we are going to continue fighting for them, because we know what obstacles lie out there.''
In an apparent gibe at GOP front-runner George W. Bush, without specifically mentioning the Texas governor's name or his large tax-cut proposal, Gore said: ''The other side ... they want to adopt an economic policy that would put us right back into deficits and threaten the programs that have made progress. Their position is if the economy ain't broke, let's break it. We're not going to break it,'' he said.
''Their position on health care - they are opposed to even the health care patients' bill of rights. They are afraid to say no to the right-wing extreme. Their position on the environment is to tolerate pollution and environmental injustice,'' he said. ''We are not satisified. We certainly don't want to go back, and we are not going back.''
As Gore spoke, he was surrounded on stage by some of the state's leading business leaders and politicians, including civil rights stalwart John Lewis, a Democratic congressman from Georgia, and black elected officials from Texas and Tennessee. His speech was often interrupted by applause from the audience of about 300 African-Americans gathered in the auditorium of the black-owned Atlanta Life Insurance building on Auburn Avenue, the same street where Martin Luther King Jr. grew up, went to church, and has a museum named after him.
In kicking off his campaign in the South, Gore's aides released a list of 2,000 African-Americans leaders who support him nationwide, including 28 of the 38 members of the Congressional Black Caucus. Chris Lehane, a spokesman for Gore, said seven members have privately committed to Gore but have not publicly endorsed him.
Odessa Roberson, a 63-year-old retired nurse and cook of Atlanta, said before Gore spoke, ''I'm trying to like Al Gore.'' She added that she was looking for him to offer proposals to help uninsured senior citizens and tackle neighborhood crime.
After listening to several elected officials praise Gore and hearing him speak, she changed her tune.
As Gore made his way out of the door while the 1970s O'Jays hit ''Love Train'' blared from the speakers, Roberson said: ''I'm going to get on the Gore wagon, not that train. And I'm going to get busy barbecuing and raising money for him.''
