Clearing Reno puts Sen. Danforth on Bush short list
Associated Press Writers
Saturday, July 22, 2000; 9:28 PM
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/politics/news/latestap/A28570-2000Jul22.html
Danforth, Cheney on Bush Short List
By Ron Fournier
Associated Press Writers
Saturday, July 22, 2000; 9:28 PM
WASHINGTON �� Former Sen. John Danforth resurfaced Saturday night
as a Republican vice presidential candidate, joining former
Defense Secretary Dick Cheney on George W. Bush's short list.
Cheney is the leading candidate, a highly placed Republican
official said as the Texas governor neared his decision.
Danforth, his wife Sally, and Cheney � who also heads Bush's
search team � met secretly with Bush for a get-to-know-you
session in a Chicago hotel suite Tuesday, setting aside his
oft-stated opposition to serving as vice president. Republican
officials had assumed Danforth's reluctance disqualified him from
consideration.
Danforth's name surfaced as Arizona Sen. John McCain's chances
appeared to fade. Two Republican sources, speaking on condition
of anonymity, said the House Republicans who wrote the Bush
campaign to urge McCain's nomination had been told in advance
that it was too late for such an effort. The word was relayed
from Cheney.
Bush said he will make his decision this weekend and announce it
this week, well in advance of the July 31 opening of the
Republican convention in Philadelphia. Officials said Saturday
that Bush had not made a final decision, although he appeared to
be leaning toward Cheney.
Both Cheney and Danforth would give the GOP ticket stature and
the Washington experience that Bush lacks. Solid conservatives,
either candidate would help Bush shore up his base. Danforth has
the advantage of living in a key battleground state, Missouri.
Those mentioned as possible candidates include Govs. Frank
Keating of Oklahoma, Tom Ridge of Pennsylvania and George Pataki
of New York; Rep. John Kasich of Ohio; and Sens. Chuck Hagel of
Nebraska and Bill Frist and Fred Thompson of Tennessee.
The Danforth meeting, first reported by ABC News, was notable
because Bush is known to have had few such sessions with
candidates. Danforth's wife has expressed reservations about the
job, leading the former lawmaker to say in the past that he
didn't want to be vice president. Party officials say Mrs.
Danforth is now more open to the idea.
Shortly after the Chicago meeting began, Cheney left the room to
allow Bush to meet alone with the Danforths. Bush was said to be
impressed with the couple, though he has not known them long.
It was not known how many candidates Bush was considering, though
one official familiar with Bush's thinking said it appeared that
the Texan had more than two options remaining.
Danforth, 63, who retired from the Senate in 1995 after nine
years in office, was appointed by Attorney General Janet Reno in
September to oversee investigation of the federal government's
actions during the siege on the Branch Davidian compound in Waco,
Texas, in 1993. He issued a report Friday that cleared Reno and
all government agents of wrongdoing.
Asked why he was releasing his report when it was only 95 percent
done, he said he thought it was important to clear Reno and
others now. But he also suggested personal political
considerations, too.
"In May an unexpected political possibility came up, and if there
was any chance of that coming to pass, it would mean that I would
have to step down as special counsel," he told reporters, but he
refused to say whether completing his work meant he was now open
to becoming Bush's running mate. "I'm not going to say anything
more about politics."
In the Senate, Danforth was the chief advocate of Supreme Court
nominee Clarence Thomas during his confirmation hearings. After
leaving the Senate, he returned home to practice law in St.
Louis.
Danforth, a former state auditor and attorney general, is a
graduate of Princeton University and Yale's law and divinity
schools. An heir to the Ralston-Purina fortune, he is an ordained
Episcopal priest.
Cheney, a former Wyoming lawmaker and White House chief of staff,
emerged as the leading candidate Friday after changing his
registration from Texas to Wyoming to avoid a Constitutional
hurdle if Bush were to pick him.
Cheney's emergence quieted speculation that McCain wanted a spot
on the ticket. The timing left Republicans wondering whether Bush
was using Cheney to divert attention from his vanquished rival.
Danforth's candidacy diverts attention from McCain even further.
Aides for McCain and Bush had long since suspected the Arizona
senator had little chance of getting the job, though McCain told
a mutual friend last week that he would be willing to serve.
Cheney has a history of heart trouble, and as a former member of
President Bush's Cabinet, might undermine the younger Bush's
efforts to stand apart from his father and be viewed as a
fresh-faced Washington outsider.
"The fact that Cheney is in play this late in the process shows
that Bush is looking for somebody with national stature," said
Republican consultant Scott Reed. "The question he is wrestling
with is: 'Do I go national, or do I look for a regional or state
candidate?'"
The former defense chief, who has residences in Texas and
Wyoming, spent Saturday in his suburban Washington home with his
wife, prominent Republican Lynne Cheney, their daughter and her
family.
After dinner, Cheney walked the family to their car. He refused
to talk about the running mate search or his prospects.
"There's no more news here tonight," Cheney said.
His wife added, "There's a lid on. Go home."
� 2000 The Associated Press
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