ORTSMOUTH, N.H. - Of the hundreds of endorsements Governor George W. Bush has received, the most unexpected may have come yesterday.
John H. Sununu, the former governor and the man who led President George Bush to victory in New Hampshire in 1988, gave his support to the younger Bush at a packed speech at Liberty Mutual Insurance, saying he wanted to make it ''very, very clear'' that he is supporting the Texas governor for president.
Less than a decade ago, however, it was Bush who was reportedly clarifying things for Sununu.
When Sununu resigned as chief of staff in the Bush White House in 1991, legend had it that George W. Bush was the one who pulled the trigger, telling him he should leave the administration after months of unbearable tension.
Yesterday, saying Bush ''was a friend and is a friend,'' Sununu told a news conference he had never harbored ill will toward the governor.
''I have never had a problem with any conversation I have had with Governor Bush,'' he said.
But because it has been widely reported otherwise, the endorsement seemed to take on more significance than the several dozen Bush has won in recent months.
When Senator John W. Warner of Virginia gave Bush the nod yesterday afternoon, Bush aides didn't bother to issue a news release here, in contrast to the news conference that was held especially to introduce Sununu.
Otherwise, Bush did not stray much from his usual message yesterday, except to criticize President Clinton's announcement of a $350 billion tax cut as ''not significant enough.''
He also used the opportunity to take a dig at his oppponent's tax plan, which is half the size of his own. ''It confirms my point that ... he [Clinton] and John McCain agree on the size of a tax cut that's not significant enough,'' Bush said.
