The Democrats "I'M Not Running Against Bentsen"

By Hugh Sidey

The day after Michael Dukakis picked his running mate, George Bush invited TIME's Hugh Sidey to his White House office for a conversation. Excerpts:

Q. Did Bentsen's selection surprise you?

A. Yes, it surprised me. It has been very well received. And it should be. It is a tribute to Bentsen. But, you see, I'm not running against Lloyd Bentsen. I'm running against Michael Dukakis, in Texas and everywhere else. How Bentsen and Dukakis get together on these issues where they are diametrically opposed, I don't know. Remember voodoo economics? Every place I went ((in 1980)) people were saying, hey, explain these differences between you and Reagan. Dukakis and Bentsen have a litany of differences. You can just walk through them, whether it's MX missile, support for the contras, support for the Reagan tax cut, gun control in the Southwest -- imagine trying to defend a person who strongly favors federal gun control in Texas. I don't think Bentsen will try to do that in Texas.

Q. Are you going to choose your vice-presidential candidate before the convention?

A. If I do, I probably will not tell a soul before the convention, including Barbara Bush . . . I have not really begun to contemplate running mates yet.

Q. Will the campaign become bitter, personal?

A. Not as far as I am concerned. It is going to be tough. Dukakis . . . has never been exposed to this level of American politics. And it is my thesis that therefore he has never been tested. Every little frailty is in focus. I've been there. I feel quite relaxed about it. ((But)) Dukakis is not prepared for what he is going to get into.

Q. What is your plan?

A. ((To)) put into focus where I differ from Michael Dukakis. He is a traditional, very liberal Democrat. And I quote him on that, saying, "I'm a liberal Democrat." And another quote, "I am a card-carrying member of the A.C.L.U."

A tremendous difference is going to be on the national security of this country, how to deal with the major world problems and who best to sit across * the table from Gorbachev or a wide array of other leaders, who best to lead the alliance, who has enough confidence and experience to chart a course for the future. My case to the American people is, that's me. I'd be better at this than Michael Dukakis.

Q. What do you think his strengths are?

A. Persistence, doggedness. Quite smart, quite bright, quite convinced he is right. So when he takes what I would call a very liberal position in American politics, I think he is doing it from conviction. I don't think he is doing it because he is trying to get ahead in the campaign.