A Patrician Entry for the G.O.P.

Bush hopes to win the nomination in the stretch

"Ladies and gentlemen, I am a candidate for President of the U.S." The words were plain, simple and to the point, befitting the Republican who uttered them last week: George Bush, 54, a man who knows his limitations and his possibilities. A realist, Bush is hoping for other, more flamboyant contenders to flame out; then he may strike some sparks. Bush would like to be everybody's No. 2 choice for President, not a farfetched wish for a politician who has no fanatical followers but loads of friends, scarcely a foe, and an impeccable record of public service: Navy fighter pilot during World War II, Texas Congressman, U.S. envoy to China, United Nations Ambassador, Republican National Chairman and CIA Director.

Flanked by his photogenic family as he made his announcement at Washington's National Press Club, Bush took a poke at President Carter: "We have learned that good intentions are not enough in a President. To be effective, leadership in the 1980s must be based on a politics of substance, not symbols; of reason, not bombast; of frankness, not false promise." He called for the usual Republican objectives: reduced federal spending, a balanced budget, increased military strength, a tougher foreign policy.

Then he aimed a swipe at two of his Republican opponents: Ronald Reagan and fellow Texan John Connally, both of whom began their careers as Democrats. As a "lifelong Republican," Bush proclaimed, "I understand the party. I have worked in the vineyards." Indeed, Republican leaders admire Bush for holding the G.O.P. together during Watergate while he was party chairman. Admitting that he lacked political support in depth, Bush declared that the geographical breadth of his backing would help his drive for the nomination.

Following his speech, Bush took off in a chartered DC-9 for a four-day, nonstop tour of most of the New England states and Florida and Alabama--all crucial to him because of their early February and March primaries. He must make a good showing fast or he is almost sure to sink among all the contenders. At each stop Bush, lean, elegant and softspoken, handled the crowds with the easy grace of a Yankee patrician to the political manner born. His father, Prescott Bush, was a Senator from Connecticut from 1952 to 1962. George Bush went to Phillips Academy, Andover, and to Yale, where he made Phi Beta Kappa, before moving to Texas in 1948, where he later helped found and run the Zapata Petroleum Corp. Bush promised last week to reveal his income taxes for the past five years and his net worth "to dispel the notion that I am a rich Texas something-or-other." He is rich enough. Bush sold his oil-industry holdings in 1966 when he was first elected to Congress, but his net worth is estimated at upwards of $1.3 million.

As he campaigned, Bush stressed his broad experience in government. In Boston, he pursued the youth vote very nearly to the cradle: "I want to restore the stars in third-graders' eyes." But he failed to stir his audiences with speeches that contained more thought than passion and were carefully qualified. Compared with either Connally or Reagan, Bush is unexciting on the stump, a serious handicap for any long shot.

Bush lags far behind Reagan, Connally and Senate Minority Leader Howard Baker in the Republican polls, leading some pundits to suggest unkindly that his campaign has already peaked. His competitors, while respecting him as a person, do not think he has much chance of winning the nomination. For one thing, he has not yet succeeded in creating a distinctive political identity for himself. If he continues to blend into the crowd of Republican presidential aspirants, he will not be noticed by the voters, who seem to be yearning for assertive leadership.

Bush's staff and organization, on the other hand, are highly regarded. Talent has been plucked from a variety of camps. Jim Baker, the Texan who engineered Ford's 1976 convention victory, is Bush's campaign chairman. Robert Mosbacher, a Ford fund raiser, is finance chairman; Political Director David Keene did well as Reagan's Southern coordinator in the last election; Charles Snider, who will coordinate the Southern states, was George Wallace's campaign director; Bush's deputy press secretary, Susan Morrison, used to be communications director of the Democratic National Committee. Already the staff has set up committees in nine of the first eleven primary states, appointed finance chairmen in 40 states, and raised $825,000--more than enough to obtain federal matching funds.

Other G.O.P. candidates were also on the move last week. Senator Baker asserted unequivocally for the first time that he would run, and tapped Missouri Senator John Danforth to be his issues manager. Kansas Senator Robert Dole revealed plans for a formal announcement on May 14. However, the first candidate to declare, Illinois Congressman Phil Crane, was having trouble. He was already $888,000 in debt, much of it owed to Richard Viguerie, the direct-mail fund-raising wizard. Crane replaced his campaign manager, and four of the candidate's top aides promptly quit.

As the Republican race starts shaping up, Bush's strategy is to appeal to party moderates without alienating conservatives, a task he has adroitly performed for most of his career. The biggest obstacle, as he sees it, is Front Runner Reagan, who is not scheduled to announce until September. Bush's advisers hope that Reagan will stumble somewhere along the primary route. "He is a great old dog," says Keene, "but he won't hunt this year." Even if Reagan falters, other, better-known candidates would have to fall aside before "everyone's No. 2" could be No. 1.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.