1988 Democratic National Convention : Bentsen Sees His Role as Wresting Depressed ‘Oil Patch’ From the GOP

ATLANTA — Texas Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, whom the Democrats will nominate here for vice president, said Tuesday that the Democratic strategy will be to use him in “the oil-producing states of California, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Colorado” in an effort to win the Sun Belt region that the Republicans have dominated in recent presidential elections.

“Absolutely vulnerable, the Republicans are, in those areas,” Bentsen said, his patrician tone suddenly taking on a harder edge. “What makes it especially worse for George Bush is that he was an oilman and he hasn’t been able to deliver.”

Interviewed in his hotel suite, the 67-year-old Bentsen said he was eager to go after the expected GOP nominee, especially in Texas, which Bush, who grew up in Connecticut, now calls home.

“George’s problem is not being tough enough and, when he tries to be, it doesn’t ring true,” Bentsen said, laughing.

Really ‘Old Friends’

“But we’ll have some fun. He and I are actually old friends.”

The tall, silver-haired Texan clearly was enjoying sudden star status after 18 relatively low-key years in the Senate.

In campaigning around the city this week, Bentsen has displayed warmth and a casual flexibility that noticeably contrast with the reserve of the man who chose him to be his running mate, Massachusetts Gov. Michael S. Dukakis.

Everywhere he speaks in this Southern city, Bentsen makes it clear that he knows his role is to assure voters in the Sun Belt about Dukakis.

“We have a man from New England,” Bentsen says in soothing Southwestern tones, “but he speaks our language, and it is a common language that is understood by all, a language of housing and health care and education.”

In the kind of spontaneous showing of affection that is rarely seen from Dukakis, Bentsen turned to former President Jimmy Carter at a small gathering the other night and said: “Mr. President, did you know that since you left Washington the man who took your place has more than doubled the national debt? “Mr. President, we miss you.”

Carter beamed, and the cluster of friends nearby applauded.

Although Dukakis insists the Democrats will have no target states, Bentsen said in the interview that he plans to spend much of his time in the so-called “oil patch,” the states hit hard in recent years by plummeting oil prices and increased fuel imports.

Bentsen did not express particular interest in the Deep South, a Republican bastion in recent presidential elections, but thinks his conservative voting record on issues such as gun control and prayer in schools could help the ticket there.

“But Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, California--that’s where I’ll be,” he said.

Energy Policy Gap

“People in those states were supporters of Reagan and Bush, many of them, but the Administration turned their backs on them. We just don’t have an energy policy, and now we’re seeing the consequences. The rise in imports is over 40%, and we’re going to be worse off than we were in 1973-74.”

Bentsen acknowledged that Bush will be able to point to sustained economic growth under President Reagan, but he said that when he and Dukakis call for change during the campaign, he does not think they will scare away those in the middle class who have prospered in the last eight years.

“This big middle class is very concerned about education, about their kids being able to go to college,” Bentsen said. “And when they hear that it is going to cost $60,000 for a child born today to go to college 18 years from now at a public institution, that has to shake them up. That’s why the polls show the uneasiness the public feels about the future. We’ve got a situation where this country has been on a spending binge.

“Now, you can have a feeling of good times when you do that kind of stuff, and that’s what (the Republicans) have done.”

Concedes Part in Debt

In his first campaign remarks since Dukakis chose him, Bentsen often railed against the budget deficit run up under Reagan. But he conceded Tuesday that he was not blameless, since he voted for the Administration’s 1981 tax cuts and its military buildup--both areas in which Dukakis has been extremely critical of Reagan and Bush.

“Yes, I voted for the ’81 tax cuts,” Bentsen said, “but what happened (later) was that there was a combination of high interest rates and the large increase in spending on defense, so you suddenly had all those factors.

“It went too far. So I and others moved to taper off some of the defense growth and to recapture some of the tax cuts.”

Bentsen and Dukakis have taken very dissimilar positions on many issues, but the senator indicated Tuesday that he does not intend to alter his views to join the Democratic ticket.

Asked whether he thought he could persuade Dukakis to support the MX missile, Bentsen shook his head and looked doubtful.

‘Just One Quarterback’

“I don’t know if I will be able to change his mind on that,” Bentsen said. “I won’t hesitate to speak up, but finally, there is just one quarterback and one President. The ultimate responsibility and the ultimate consequences are his.”

Dukakis also opposes aid to the Nicaraguan rebels and often assails “the Administration’s illegal war in Central America.”

At Odds on Contras

Bentsen has supported Contra aid. He said Tuesday: “I believe strongly that we have to keep the pressure on the Sandinistas. I think they are a bad lot . . . but I want to point out that I have also supported the Arias Peace Plan. I was quite willing to find an accommodation.”

He was referring to the plan for ending the Nicaraguan civil war put forth by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias Sanchez.

Asked if he would support future aid to the Contras even though Dukakis opposes it, Bentsen said: “It will depend on how it is structured. The other night I supported one resolution that warned the Sandinistas that Congress might well again consider military aid to the Contras if they continue on this course,” he said, alluding to the recent government crackdown on civil liberties in Nicaragua.

“So I might support it, depending on the circumstances. I won’t rule it out, but I would prefer another solution.”

Friendly With Jackson

Bentsen said that, as a Southerner, he probably has an advantage over Dukakis in working with the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who grew up in Greenville, S. C., and is visibly more at ease with Bentsen than he is with Dukakis.

“Jesse and I talked on the phone the other day, and he said to me, ‘You talk grits,’ ” Bentsen said, grinning.

North Carolina Sen. Terry Sanford, one of several Democrats who urged Dukakis advisers to consider Bentsen, said here after seeing his man in action: “Lloyd is going to surprise some folks. He’s going to be a big hit--you watch.”

CONVENTION HIGHLIGHTS

4:00 p.m. Call to Order. 4:01 p.m. Invocation by NAACP Executive Director Benjamin Hooks. 6:03 p.m. Nominations of Michael S. Dukakis and the Rev. Jesse Jackson for President. 6:46 p.m. Roll call of states. 7:38 p.m. Announcement of results. 7:46 p.m. Celebration and music by Dionne Warwick.

CBS, NBC and ABC will provide live coverage of the convention from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. CNN will broadcast the entire event. Times listed are PDT.