ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, November 5, 1996 TAG: 9611050079
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
BOTH CHALLENGERS questioned the president's ethics, while he pledged continued economic gains for the nation.
President Clinton appealed for a second term Monday by taking credit for a revived economy and promising that if given four more years, ``we'll be better off still.'' Battling the odds on election eve, Bob Dole countered that Clinton faced mounting ethical woes and declared: ``America deserves better.''
Control of Congress was at stake, too, as Americans prepared to cast ballots in the last presidential election of the 1900s. Clinton appeared to have the upper hand in the race against Dole and Reform Party candidate Ross Perot, while many favored Republicans to keep their House and Senate majorities.
``I'm not optimistic on a national basis at all on the presidential race,'' said Florida Republican Chairman Tom Slade. ``It truly would be a political miracle if Dole can pull this out.''
House Speaker Newt Gingrich voiced confidence he would not have to hand his gavel over to Democrats come January. ``I'm currently planning on what we'll do next year in the majority,'' he said as he campaigned back home in Georgia.
In a fiery speech Monday night, Clinton urged Iowans to support Democratic congressional candidates and said Republicans had abandoned talk of their ``Contract on America'' because of a voter revolt against GOP attempts to curb Medicare and education spending.
Strategists in both parties said dozens of congressional races were too close to predict.
The presidential candidates got up early Monday; Dole hadn't bothered sleeping at all.
In Cleveland, Clinton said nearly 11million jobs had been created and the deficit had been cut by 60percent since he took office. ``We're better off than we were four years ago,'' he said on the last day of what probably will be the 50-year-old's final campaign.
Clinton noted Dole's Senate opposition to the family leave law and said his Republican opponent wanted to abolish the Education Department and enact a ``risky scheme'' to cut taxes that would imperil Medicare.
Dole, at 73, probably was asking for votes for the last time. His career includes 35 years in Congress and a record 12 years as the Senate Republican leader.
``I need your votes,'' Dole told a crowd in New Mexico as he raced through four time zones and six states in a final push that was to end at noon today. ``There's still time.''
Dole continued raising questions about Clinton's role in questionable Democratic Party fund-raising from foreign interests:
``I will not compromise ethics or violate the public trust. You can't say that about the current administration. If you want a full-time president who won't be going to hearings or trials or anything else, Bob Dole is your choice.''
Perot's message echoed Dole's: ``Our president, his wife and a number of associates face serious criminal charges,'' Perot told a Texas audience. ``Would you allow a person with pending criminal charges to baby-sit your children?''
It was unclear whether Perot was referring to Democratic fund-raising or the Whitewater investigation. No criminal charges are pending against Clinton or his wife.
LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. 1. President and Hillary Rodham Clinton wave toby CNBsupporters Monday at Cleveland State University; 2. Bob and
Elizabeth Dole (below) urged voters in Alamogordo, N.M., to elect
him. color. KEYWORDS: POLITICS PRESIDENT