ECONOMY WILL DRIVE ELECTION; AREA DELEGATES HEAD TO HOUSTON

The economy and not abortion will be the key issue in this presidential election campaign, say four area delegates and alternates to the Republican National Convention.

The four-day convention at the Houston Astrodome gets under way Monday.

Abortion was a topic of debate at the Republican Party's platform hearings last week and pro-choice Republicans have vowed to bring the issue up for floor debate. The party's platform calls for a constitutional amendment to ban abortion.

Barbara Bush has suggested the platform should be silent on the issue of abortion.

However, four Southeast Missouri delegates and alternates, who describe themselves as pro-life, say they don't believe the abortion issue will seriously divide the party.

"I don't really see it as the key issue," said Ralph Ford of Cape Girardeau, the party's county chairman and one of three delegates from the 8th Congressional District.

In all, Missouri will have 47 delegates and 47 alternates at the convention.

Ford said pocketbook matters such as the economy and taxes are the key issues.

"I think people are really concerned about the economy. That comes before anything right now," said Julia Kridelbaugh, an alternate from Cape Girardeau.

Doyle Brown, an alternate from Sikeston, agreed. "The economy is going to be the key issue this time around."

Brown maintained that the tax-and-spend policies of a liberal Congress are a major issue in this campaign.

And he argued that electing Democrat Bill Clinton as president would mean higher taxes. "They are talking a huge tax increase."

Matt Henson of Poplar Bluff, who is an at-large delegate, said abortion is "a single issue in a multi-issue campaign."

"Although it is a societal concern and a very important issue morally, traditionally economic and tax considerations have always weighed heavy in the political race," he said.

Ford said, "The thing that bothers me is, if we have a Democratic president with a Democratic Congress, how much further in debt are we going to be?

"I feel like we would have more federal regulations. I think taxes would go up," he said.

The convention will be the first for Henson, Ford and Kridelbaugh, and the first one as a participant for Brown.

Brown said he attended the 1964 convention in San Francisco, but not as an official participant.

A retired educator, Ford has been involved in Republican Party politics at the local level for years. But there's nothing like going to a convention, he said. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience."

Kridelbaugh said she's proud to be attending the national convention as a member of the Missouri delegation.

"I am a grassroots worker that has been working out in the trenches for years, and I feel like it is a privilege to be a part of the convention as a volunteer. It's sort of a thank-you to be able to go and be part of history," she observed.

Both Kridelbaugh and Ford said they have received a large volume of pre-convention mail, much of it from special interest groups.

Ford said he has received a lot of mail from groups supporting or opposing abortion.

The mail, he said, has included everything from letters to brochures and pamphlets. "I've glanced at everything I've gotten," he pointed out.

The four area delegates and alternates said they view the GOP convention as a chance to present the party's views to the American people and to generate enthusiasm for President Bush's re-election campaign.

"I think the convention is going to be very important in getting the campaign fired up and off to a good start," said Brown.

He said he believes the convention will clearly outline the differences between Bush and Clinton.

Kridelbaugh said she views the convention as a chance for a little "cheerleading" for the Republican Party.

"I think the purpose of the convention itself, in my eyes, is to be educated on certain issues through the party and the party's perspective and then to get psyched up, if you will, for a long road ahead of us back in the trenches at home."

All four discounted current polls that show Clinton leading Bush.

"None of the polls we are seeing now are unexpected," said Henson. "The polls I think are really overdone."

Ford said that Clinton has been on the attack since the Democratic convention. But he said he expects to see Bush and the Republican Party come out swinging this week.

Ford and Henson said Bush's greatest strength has been his handling of foreign policy.

"If Reagan was the great communicator, Bush is the great negotiator," said Henson. "No one questions his foreign policy strengths and on one accuses Clinton of having any."

Of Bush, Ford said, "I would say if he has a weakness, it would be economic. But the reason he has a problem with the economy is he is dealing with a liberal Democratic Congress. They won't work together."

Ford said delegates and alternates don't get a free ride. They have to pay for their trip to Houston, including the cost of the motel room as well as other expenses. Ford estimated that his expenses will total about $1,000, including air fare.

"The federal government might put a lot of money into it, but the delegates put a lot of their own money into it," he said.

With more than 4,000 delegates and alternates, the convention will pump a lot of money into the Houston economy, he said.

While at the convention, delegates can attend a variety of briefing sessions, as well as various parties and fundraisers.

"It sounds like we work all day, work all night and then party. I am not sure when sleep comes in," said Brown.

Ford said, "The activities go on all the way up until 2 o'clock in the morning.

"I am wondering when I am going to get some sleep," he remarked. "I am not the party animal that much."

But he said, parties are a part of any convention. "I think it will be enjoyable and there will be entertainment and parties. That goes along with it."