Bush Gets Unanimous Backing of Boston Police Union Leaders

The leadership of Boston’s police union endorsed George Bush for President in a unanimous vote Wednesday, saying the vice president would do a better job than Massachusetts Gov. Michael S. Dukakis of seeing to the needs of law enforcement.

The 51-0 endorsement of the Boston Police Patrolman’s Assn., the largest police organization in New England, led to a change of plans for Bush. His campaign spokeswoman, Alixe Glen, said he would travel to Boston today to accept the endorsement of the 1,500-member union.

The trip to Boston is the second this month for Bush and affords the vice president a chance to embarrass Dukakis politically. When he toured Boston Harbor early this month, Bush claimed Dukakis has done little to clean up the badly polluted waters.

Union President Robert Guiney said union leaders were pressured from the highest levels of state government on the vote. “We had a few calls,” Guiney said.

“Maybe people took us for granted,” he said. “The police officers in this state are upset with the governor and his policies.”

Dukakis, the Democratic presidential nominee, said he wasn’t surprised by the endorsement. He said he still has the support of most law enforcement organizations.