Quayle Stumps New Hampshire for Bush Cause

NASHUA, N.H. — Shopping for votes in recession-plagued New Hampshire, Vice President Dan Quayle led the White House plunge into the campaign here Wednesday, telling voters “we’ve got the message” about the sorry state of the nation’s economy.

As Quayle moved from high-tech factory to low-tech barber shop, he got a blunt message for President Bush, who is in Japan. At the Ingersoll Rand pulp and paper machinery plant, 36-year-old machinist Don St. Pierre said: “I think he should be spending more time on the issues here. He should take care of his own before helping other people.”

For Bush and Quayle, the early weeks and months of the 1992 political season weren’t supposed to be like this. But with the economy mired in recession and conservative commentator Patrick J. Buchanan mounting a challenge for the Republican nomination, the Administration finds itself on the defensive.

“We are,” said Quayle, “starting the campaign earlier than we anticipated.”

Taking aim at Buchanan, the vice president said: “In challenging times, you need the best. You don’t need some glib rhetoric. You need someone who has been there.”

To counter complaints that Bush has not understood the suffering caused by the recession in this northeastern corner of the nation, Quayle sought to persuade everyone he encountered that the White House is paying attention to them.

With Buchanan’s “America first” campaign challenging Bush’s free-trade approach, Quayle said at a news conference:

“I understand you want to send a message. We’ve got the message. The President understands the problem and he’s going to do something about it. But please, don’t send us a message of protectionism. Don’t send us a message of isolationism. Don’t listen to the Washington pundits. Listen to the President of the United States.”

Quayle paid a visit to the Pheasant Lane shopping mall, accompanied by a crush of reporters and camera crews that grew to about 80 people after Bush fell ill in Tokyo with what was described as stomach flu.