by Peter Felsenfeld
The insurgent campaign of Bill Bradley lies face down, critically wounded and in
need of life-support as the final votes roll in from the pivitol "Super Tuesday"
primaries.
Entering yesterday's contest, Bradley knew he needed to win some
key states in order to keep his hopes alive. As the East Coast polls closed,
however, Gore immerged as the dominant democrat, having swept the region in both
the popular vote and the delegate count.
Gore crushed Bradley in New York,
the grand prize of the Eastern campaign, winning 65 percent of the electoral vote
and 155 delegates to Bradley's 82. In Georgia, Gore took 84 percent of the vote
and 62 of the state's 69 delegates.
With less than 10 percent of the votes recorded in California, Gore had ammased a
commanding lead with almost 80 percent of the popular vote. With 367 delegates
in the balance, California could represent the end of Bradley's uphill struggle.
"Gore hit gold in California tonight," said Bob Mulholland, campaign advisor for
the Democratic Party. "You should commend Bill Bradley, and he should be thanked
for his public service. He was a good sparring partner for Vice-president Al
Gore."
From the beginning of the campaign, Bradley had trouble separating his views
from those of his powerfull opponent. On the critical Democratic issues of gun
control, health care and education, differences between the candidates seemed to
lie in the arcane details, incomprehensible to the average voter.
To set himself apart, Bradley trumpeted his NBA experience and called on a bevy
of athletes to vouch for his sensitivity to racial issues. Bradley held
celebrity studded fund raisers around the country, including a reunion of his
championship New York Knicks team in Madison Square Garden. Bradley's trump
card: a national television commercial featuring Michael Jordan.
"He has a deep sense of issues of race and a genuine commitment to making racial
unity a top priority," said Julie Wong, Bradley's California press secretary.
But Gore countered with an impressive series on high-profile endorsements from
prominant African Americans including Jesse Jackson, Bill Cosby, Willie Brown and
Shaquille O'Neal.
Gore has come out in favor of affirmative action and aligns himself closely with
the economic prosperity of the Clinton era. He frequently mentions African-
American unemployment, which dropped from 14.6 to 7.8 percent during Clinton's
administration, and the Civil Rights Act of 1990, which he co-sponsored as a
member of congress.
"Gore has a long working relationsip with the African-American community," said
David Chai, Gore's California Press Secretary. "He's worked hand in hand with
African Americans on issues like business loans, education, crime and health
care. He's been immersed in the community and that makes him understand the
issues."
Despite constant acrimony, Bradley and Gore's views appeared virtually
interchangeable as "Super Tuesday" approached. "I agree with Bill," was the most
repeated phrase in their last California debate. In the end, however, Bradley
couldn't compete with the Gore machine; his effort will soon represent a mere
footnote in the story of the millenium election. The real show is about to
begin.
Mark Lemmerman contributed to this report
Photos Courtesy of NCSA
