Letter from Washington
By Elizabeth Drew
The New Yorker, March 7, 1988 P. 99
Dukakis has thus far been lucky. His coming in third in Iowa-a great disappointment to his staff-was treated by the press largely as a victory of sorts. His luck held in New Hampshire where he came in first. His bankroll is the largest among the Democrats. It was collected early & was self-perpetuating. Writer analyzes Dukakis as a candidate. He has improved-he comes across as less parochial & his candidacy has more focus. He still has a "message" problem. Thus far he appeals to the more cerebral, well-off, good-government-oriented voters-but not to move large numbers of people, or to greatly expand his constituency. He is still on shaky ground on foreign policy. His tendency to talk about more than he knows is even more troubling than the large gaps in his knowledge. Tells about his comments on the Monroe Doctrine, which got him into a bit of a jam. The Dukakis people hope to come out of Mar. 8th with the most delegates, and sew up the nomination shortly after that
This article appears in the print edition of the March 7, 1988, issue.