An Early Lock on Veep, at Least < Gore builds a powerful base

Al Gore for Vice President? You won't see any bumper stickers bearing those words. No presidential candidate worth his matching funds would admit that his wish list has room for second place. When the subject came up at a press conference last week, Gore looked as though he had sniffed a skunk in church. Four times in 90 seconds, he declared, "I have no interest." He is, Gore insists, a national candidate for the presidency, not merely a regional entry or would-be power broker.

He's right: his clever tactic of positioning himself as the only Democratic centrist and his impressive grasp of the issues have made Gore, at 39, a viable contender for the top spot. But in recent weeks he has become something more: the only Democrat building a solid geographic base and, partly as a result, the only contender in either party developing an early lock on at least the second spot on a ticket. Having decided to concentrate on the South rather than Iowa and New Hampshire, the junior Senator from Tennessee has been reaping a daily harvest of endorsements from leaders of the region's white establishment. At the very least, this solid base will give him the cards to play power poker with Southern chips, along with Jesse Jackson, if the game is still in progress when the primaries end.

Gore's endorsements come in part because he is perceived as a safe favorite son for Southerners. He is pursuing a risky strategy that has failed others who gave short shrift to Iowa and New Hampshire. But 1988 has its own dynamics. With such a diffuse and crowded field and a chance that the early votes will be splintered, there is a distinct advantage to having a regional base, especially if no one else does. Gore's base helped him enter the new year with nearly $2.4 million in ready campaign cash, second only to Michael Dukakis among Democrats. Consultant Bob Squier calls Gore's ability to build a regional support system the "first institutional breakthrough among the Democrats."

Gore's appeal to moderates, his easy rapport with black leaders, and the fact that he will be the only white Southerner with a bloc of delegates constitute a large pile of chips. Says Nathan Landow, a fund raiser who helped coax Gore into the race: "If he doesn't get the top spot, he is the obvious running mate for any Northerner under any scenario, including a late entry by Mario Cuomo. Al Gore would bring all the necessary pieces."