Clinton Widens Lead Over Dole

Dole has tried harping on the economy, offering a 15 per cent across-the-board tax cut as the centrepiece of his campaign. But into the final weeks of the campaign, not even the lure of keeping more money appears to be attracting voters into the Republican camp.

A fresh Reuters poll shows that Clintons lead over Dole has widened to more than 14 points. Disappointingly for the Republicans, the President leads in every age category, every income group, every ethnic group and across the gender gap. The President also appears to have locked up 26 states and the District of Columbia. Dole, in contrast, is leading in just 13 states.

 

Short of a major crisis in the Clinton camp, and having already deployed his tax card, Dole is now left with the task of trying to demolish the President on the tricky character issue.

The task is turning out to be harder than it sounds. Whitewater, the Arkansas land development scandal which is dogging First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, is a messy, highly complicated issue which is hard to explain.