Campaign 2000 : Bush AWOL - Brief Article

* Say what you will about the slightly manic Al Gore or the shoulder- shrugging Bill Bradley, but at the recent Democratic "town hall" meeting in New Hampshire, they were both poised and informed. Their several decades' combined public service were obvious: These candidates are serious politicians, grown-ups. What if there had been a third stool on the stage that night, for George W. Bush? Would his frat-boy charm have seemed juvenile in comparison? Would he have been able to handle detailed questions about federal policy as deftly? Would he have been the political force of nature that his boosters make him out to be, obviously ready for the rigors of a presidential race?

* The answer, of course, is . . . we don't know. Bush skipped the Republican event the next night. In this, he is obviously playing textbook front-runner politics: Don't get into a situation that puts you on the same footing as the also-rans. But Republicans should demand more of Bush. The party, collectively, has placed a huge bet on him, without seeing him perform in a high-pressure, unscripted environment. It is clear that he is pretty good on the stump, at fundraisers, and with individual reporters. It is not clear that he can deliver a message, and keep his footing, during a debate, a crucial indicator of the ultimate potency of his candidacy.

Bush's absence at the Republican town-hall event hurt him precisely because it played into the image of a candidate who has skated through much of his career on connections and good fortune, and who plans to try to do the same in the primary season, trading this time not just on his family name but on the near-unanimous support of the GOP establishment. Bush had also skipped the forum prior to the Ames straw poll. This is simply not good enough, and adds to the worries that he might not be ready for prime time. Al Gore (or Bill Bradley) isn't going to give Bush a pass, come next fall. He shouldn't get one now. At the moment, Bush has agreed to participate in only one debate this year, a December forum in New Hampshire. But that's too late (serious candidates, after all, have already dropped out of the race) and not enough-not to vet the party's presumptive presidential nominee.

Other, earlier debating opportunities could be arranged if only Bush would make it clear that he were available. This would not only be good for the party, it would presumably serve the Bush campaign's interests-taking some of the pressure off the December forum in New Hampshire. Back in September, rallying the American team at the Ryder Cup, Bush read a passage from a letter written by Col. William Barret Travis at the Alamo. It was a stirring statement of the importance of standing and fighting. It shouldn't apply only to golfers.

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