Now Reagan’s men have debate doubts

Press, 25 September 1980, Page 7

Now Reagan’s men have debate doubts

NZPA-Reuter Miami Ronald Reagan campaigned in. President Carter’s native South yesterday while his staff debated ’ whether: ; he should takei the’ biggest risk of all in his battle for the presidency. '< - ’ The argument is over whether Mr Reagan should now meet the President in a televised debate that might decide the 1980 fight for the White House. Some Reagan advisers feel this is a risk he must take — just as Richard Nixon and John Kennedy did in 1960 and Mr Carter and President Ford did in 1976. Others are resisting the idea and, according to Lyn Nofziger, Mr Reagan’s press secretary,’“We have a de-bate-and-see policy. There is no rush.”

Privately, some Reagan aides sayjthey doubt whether a Reagan-Carter confrontation will take place. But they say that this is because Mr Carter will not meet their terms.

They want Mr Carter to agree to meet John Anderson in a confrontation similar to the one Mr Reagan had'this week with the independent liberal candidate.

Mr Carter refused to take part in that debate, fearing that this would result in the public taking Mr Anderson’s candidacy more seriously than at present. His side feels that a strong Anderson candidacy would rob their - candidates of votes in too many crucial states and thus deny the President re-election. Both Mr Anderson and Mr Reagan claimed victory after their one-hour debate. Mr Nofziger said that the debate proved to people who did not know Mr Reagan that “the Governor is competent, that he does not have horns and that he’s not irresponsible.’’ Mr Carter, while pressing for a head-on meeting with Mr Reagan, is refusing to give in to the Republican’s terms. His campaign manager, Robert Strauss, said yesterdav that Mr Carter would meet Mr Anderson in a debate if it included all other minority-party candidates. . While the Reagan side pondered the debate issue, their candidate campaigned in Tennessee and Florida, two normally Democratic states which -might go either way in the 1980 campaign.