Bush Speaks on Crime in N.J. Visit, Studies for Debate

Preoccupied with the challenge awaiting him in Los Angeles, Vice President George Bush surfaced briefly Monday in Trenton, N.J., for a familiar recital on the subject of crime--and then returned here to bone up for his impending debate.

An aide described Bush, at his house on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Observatory here, as alone for most of the day with his briefing books and his thoughts.

“It’s very low-key,” one staffer said.

One mock debate was conducted with Bush and his handlers last weekend but no others are planned. Campaign officials said Bush would devote less time than previously to debate preparation, believing that there is only so much left to be studied and learned from this long campaign.

Heads for California Today

The Republican presidential candidate travels to California today via Seattle. Much of Wednesday and Thursday are to be devoted to rest and final debate tuneup.

Bush will debate Democratic presidential nominee Michael S. Dukakis for the second and final time of the 1988 campaign Thursday at 6 p.m. at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion.

The vice president will resume a full schedule of campaign events in the state Friday and then travel in a caravan of buses up the Central Valley on Saturday.

As for Columbus Day, an important holiday for Italian-Americans, Bush on Monday made a half-day journey from Washington to a heavily ethnic, predominantly Democratic neighborhood of Trenton to take what an assistant called the “high road” on the crime issue.

By that, it was meant that Bush avoided his usual criticism of the Democrats as soft on crime. Instead, to an audience of Knights of Columbus and other local Italian-Americans, he delivered his oft-repeated pledges to give more consideration to victims of crime than to criminals, to build more federal prison cells if elected, to appoint tough judges and to institute a national policy of “zero tolerance” against drugs.

Impact of Crime Cited

“Part of what I mean when I speak of a ‘kinder, gentler nation’ is a nation where the awful impact of violent crime on victims, on families--and all too often on our children, senior citizens and vulnerable members of our society--is lessened,” Bush said.

His campaign also released the membership of a new “Drug-Free America Coalition,” a group created to publicize Bush’s activities and goals on the drug front. The 5 1/2-page membership list included politicians, sports and entertainment figures, business leaders, police authorities and community activists.

Among vice chairmen of the group were former Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr, former baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, race car driver Bobby Unser and Stacy Keach, the actor who served six months in a British prison after he was caught with 1.3 ounces of cocaine.

To make sure that a Monday did not pass without supplying cameramen with good picture possibilities, Bush took a handshake tour down the heart of an Italian-American neighborhood, hugging a baby and kissing a 93-year-old woman. He also walked into a pool hall and sank the 4 ball in a cross-table corner shot with such authority that even he seemed slightly surprised.