With All Five Fingers

Savoring his success, the President campaigns for Democratic votes

"My esteem in the country has gone up substantially. It is very nice now that when people wave at me, they use all their fingers."

With that, Jimmy Carter wiggled his fingers at the 2,000 cheering Democrats who last week Attended a $100-a-plate dinner in Baltimore's Civic Center. Carter was on hand to give a boost to Harry Hughes, the Democratic candidate for Governor of Maryland, but the President was also putting in a well-deserved plug for himself. As the 95th Congress came to a tumultuous close after passing 189 bills in its final week, Carter had reason to be pleased. Said the President: "We have a firm grip now on the fiscal management of our Government."

Carter had definitely staged a comeback since his summer of discontent. The turnaround was perhaps not quite so dramatic as the White House thought, but nonetheless was substantial enough. The President had reversed his standing in an Associated Press-NBC poll, which two months ago showed that only 38% of the public wanted him to run for re-election and that half the people did not want him even to try. A similar survey last week indicated that 50% of the public think he should run again and only 38% are opposed. Explains Investment Banker Nimrod Frazer, a Democratic fund raiser in Montgomery, Ala.: "People down here say that Carter has finally stopped fooling around and has taken charge. Taken charge--that's the buzz word."

To keep his momentum going against an ugly wave of economic difficulties, the President announces his new anti-inflation program this week. Despite all the buildup, the proposals are largely voluntary wage-price guidelines (see BUSINESS). Carter is asking for a 7% limit on wage increases, a 6.5% overall ceiling on price rises. An expanded Council on Wage and Price Stability will closely monitor wage-price shifts; if a company exceeds the guidelines, it can be threatened with a suspension of Government contracts or purchases. But the President continues to insist that he will not resort to mandatory controls.

As evidence of Carter's emphasis on he fight against inflation, his top aide, Hamilton Jordan, moved in to supervise strategy. Treasury Secretary Michael Blumenthal wanted to wait until January in order to give the Administration time to establish a more comprehensive program. Congressional Liaison Frank Moore urged that the program be started well ahead of the elections so that the voters would have an opportunity to understand the plan's complex provisions before they go to the polls. "No one will make a decision," complained one White House economist. Jordan sided with Moore. He instructed Jerry Rafshoon to arrange a TV special for the announcement of the new program. There had been talk of Carter giving another informal fireside chat about economic problems, but White House aides thought that would be inappropriate; they wanted Carter to appear as businesslike as possible for the occasion and to address the viewers from behind his desk in the Oval Office. "It's not going to be very chatty," said an aide. "It is going to be a sober, realistic appraisal of where we stand and what we need to do."

The President remained guardedly silent, for the time being, about whether or not he would sign the $18.7 billion tax cut that Congress had voted in its closing rush. Carter felt that the measure benefited the affluent too much at the expense of the poor. While Carter hesitated, Senator Ted Kennedy spoke out. Raising the flag on some issues that he may be able to use against Carter in 1980, Kennedy called the bill the "worst tax legislation approved by Congress since the days of Calvin Coolidge and Andrew Mellon." He urged Carter to veto the measure. Asked about Kennedy's statement at a briefing, White House Press Secretary Jody Powell replied, with more than a trace of sarcasm: "We obviously appreciate advice from any quarter on this."

As a symbolic gesture, Carter announced the seventh veto of his Administration. The bill he rejected would have provided funding reaching $32 million in fiscal 1982 for the aquaculture industry, the commercial raising of catfish, prawns, crabs and other aquatic life. Carter felt that the industry had already received enough federal assistance, and he objected to providing further subsidies at a time when the budget needs to be reduced to fight inflation. On a more celebratory note, he signed the measure extending the period for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment until 1982.

After Carter's Camp David success and the closing weeks of Congress, his aides felt sure that the November elections could be a triumphant referendum for the President, since few Democratic seats are expected to be lost. At a political strategy meeting in the Roosevelt Room at the White House last week, Political Coordinator Tim Kraft could scarcely contain his elation. "We're going to be able to take big credit out of this election," he said. "We've turned this whole damned thing around." Staffers no longer had to worry about inflicting an unwanted President on candidates; politicians who only recently had been avoiding Carter like stale peanuts were now eagerly asking him to make appearances. "A lot of those guys didn't want the President to come near them," said Kraft. "Now they're desperate to get him before the election."

The President is concentrating on races where Democrats have been faithful supporters of his programs or where Democrats have a good chance of toppling important Republican incumbents. After his trip to Maryland, Carter set out last weekend for Kansas and Minnesota. He was especially anxious to help the Democratic candidates in the normally Republican state of Kansas. Both Bill Roy, who is running for the Senate, and John Carlin, the candidate for Governor, are in tight races. This week the President is scheduled to visit Tennessee and Florida, where he will make a strong pitch for Gubernatorial Candidate Robert Graham. The President also plans to campaign this week in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine. On Nov. 2 and 3, he will make brief trips to five states: California, Illinois, Michigan, New York and Oregon. One candidate he is determined to assist is Chicago Congressman Abner Mikva, a liberal who has supported the Administration on most issues. Considered to be a perpetually endangered Democrat, Mikva is in a race too close to call against Republican John Porter.

For all the fanfare, however, Carter will probably have only a limited impact on the election. In many areas, where local pocketbook issues predominate, his name is rarely even mentioned in campaigns. Democratic candidates seek his help in raising money and getting out the vote, but they do not expect much beyond that. "Kansans have a respect for the presidency," says Bill Roy, who must contend with farmers angry over Carter's agriculture policies. "I'm not sure his visit will change a single vote, because Kansans are very independent when it comes to voting. They don't vote for candidates because they are endorsed."

In some states, the President is still advised to stay away. Oklahoma Governor David Boren, who is running for the Senate, was the first Democratic Governor to support Carter for President. During the campaign, Carter sent him a letter pledging to support deregulation of natural gas. After the election, he changed his mind, and Boren is still fuming. He has even persuaded other oil-state Governors to join him in bringing a suit challenging the constitutionality of the gas deregulation bill.

Small favors can also loom large in an off-year election. Carter pleased Chicago Mayor Michael Bilandic by inviting him to fly aboard Air Force One to attend Pope Paul's funeral last August. The President will spend the night at Bilandic's home when he campaigns in Chicago in early November. But in Ohio Carter irritated Cuyahoga County Chairman Tim Hagan by inviting Cleveland Mayor Dennis Kucinich to the White House. The hotheaded young mayor has antagonized Hagan and other party leaders by refusing to endorse most of the local Democrats. Last week Hagan joined other Democrats at a Cleveland rally where the keynote speaker was Ted Kennedy. The gathering of some 5,000 roared their approval when Kennedy began his speech by endorsing Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Dick Celeste and saying, "I didn't come to Ohio just because you have 25 electoral votes."

Ultimately, Carter's success will rest on how well he deals with the issue that most distresses people: inflation. "The pocket nerve is throbbing all the time because of inflation," says Pollster Mervin Field. "Inflation is bugging the public more than anything." Former President Ford is pounding away on this issue. Ford recalls that when he left office, the inflation rate stood at 4.8%. "In 20 months under the Carter Administration, we're back to unacceptable inflation." If inflation is not brought under control, many of Carter's other accomplishments could be quickly--if unfairly--forgotten.

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