Bush Endorsements in House Exaggerated – Rep. Gardner

BY MARK WINEKA
SALISBURY POST

CHARLOTTE – Somebody flunked Math 101.

State Rep. Charlotte Gardner, R-Rowan, says reports that 49 out of 69 Republicans in the N.C. General Assembly endorse Texas Gov. George W. Bush for president are greatly exaggerated.

In one day’s work, Gardner and state Sen. Betsy Cochrane signed up 39 Republicans in the two houses who said they would support a presidential candidacy by Salisbury native Elizabeth Dole.

The numbers don’t add up. Did many legislators sign pledges of support for both Bush and Dole?

‘‘That’s exactly what I’m saying,’’ said Gardner, a strong supporter of Dole’s and a member of the advisory board of the Draft Elizabeth Dole 2000 Committee.

Many legislators who signed a recent letter of support for Bush’s candidacy didn’t realize that their signatures would be interpreted as their not supporting Dole’s candidacy, too, Gardner said.

On Wednesday, talking one-on-one with fellow lawmakers, Gardner had 31 House Republicans, including herself, sign a petition supporting Dole as a candidate. On the Senate side, Cochrane has the names of eight senators who also express support for a Dole candidacy.

‘‘That’s an incredible showing in that short of time,’’ said Gardner, who traveled from Raleigh Thursday to attend a draft committee news conference at the Adam’s Mark Hotel.

At the hotel, Dottie Martin, wife of former Gov. Jim Martin, joined the Dole draft committee as a state co-chair. Jim Martin sat in the audience at the press conference.

The couple decided Dottie should take the lead role in their support of a Dole candidacy, Jim Martin said later.

‘‘Sometimes, people actually ask me to do things,’’ Dottie Martin added. ‘‘... He’s backing me in this effort. This time, I’m the one standing up.’’

On Monday of this week, a seven-member delegation of Republicans from North Carolina traveled to Austin, Texas, to have lunch with Bush and report that 11 of 15 state Senate Republicans and 38 of 54 House Republicans supported his candidacy, according to letters they had in hand.

Gardner immediately questioned those numbers, knowing that many Republican lawmakers had earlier signed draft petitions urging Dole to run. When the numbers were reported, Gardner said, she heard from many legislators.

‘‘People came to me quickly and asked, ‘What can we do to show we support this native daughter?’’’ Gardner said. ‘‘In fact, there is an incredible amount of support for Elizabeth Dole.’’

Many of the Republican lawmakers counted as endorsing Bush merely signed a sheet of paper that was passed around last week, without seeing the letter attached to it. They considered it simply as a show of support for Bush to run for president, Gardner said.

‘‘They didn’t understand this to be an exclusionary endorsement,’’ she added. ‘‘To say there is no support (for Dole) is what I’m trying to counter.’’

Margaret Kluttz, state campaign manager for the Draft Elizabeth Dole 2000 Committee, tried to steer clear of the apparent controversy over who’s endorsing who among the lawmakers. Both she and national campaign manager Earl Cox described it as American politics, pure and simple.

‘‘That’s what this country is all about,’’ Kluttz said. ‘‘... There is no doubt in my mind about the depth and breadth of support for Elizabeth Dole around the state and the country.’’

While N.C. Republican congressmen Howard Coble and Richard Burr have endorsed Dole, U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick of Charlotte has endorsed Bush.

‘‘I think she had committed to George Bush before she ever dreamed that a draft effort was forming for Elizabeth Dole,’’ Kluttz said.

The draft committee, based in Salisbury, will essentially go out of business once Dole announces formation of an exploratory committee. It will have accomplished its mission to persuade Dole to take a serious look at the presidency. Dole’s announcement about the exploratory committee will come next Wednesday in Des Moines, Iowa.

Meanwhile, the draft committee continues to assemble a wide-ranging data base of information and potential volunteers from across the country that it will forward to the Dole campaign. Volunteers with the draft committee are expected to make a transition to a campaign committee, which will be available to organize a big event for Dole, should she choose Salisbury as the place to officially announce her presidential bid.

‘‘We’re keeping our calendars wide open,’’ Kluttz said.