George W. Bush has moves that equal, or exceed, Clinton's, and he is staking out credible, independent positions

IF ANYONE is looking for the spiritual heir to the smoothest politician around, Bill Clinton, don't cast your eyes on the chip off the old block. That's because George W. Bush - and not Al Gore - has taken pages out of the president's political book, and he's added a few of his own.

It's not only that Bush - after a dalliance with right-wing exuberance - has bounced back to the political center with his re-embrace of "compassionate conservatism." On occasion at least, he's taking on his own party in Congress and agreeing with the Clinton administration.

By contrast, Gore is playing the blame game. He seems more like Darth Vader than Bob Dole ever did during the last presidential contest.

Bush last week warned GOP congressional leaders that their intention to impose a deadline on use of U.S. forces in Kosovo was wrong. It didn't hurt either that Bush's view prevailed 53-47 in the Senate.

The Republican nominee also campaigned for approval of permanent normal trade relations with China, a legislative item at the top of President Clinton's agenda. Bush went out of his way to stress his accord with the president.

On gun control, he has stolen Gore's thunder. Since most Americans favor End of Column 1tougher gun laws, anti-gun Gore would figure to be the people's choice on this issue. But Bush's more moderate approach - including free distribution of trigger locks in Texas - seems to appeal to voters.

Bush even borrowed an idea once espoused by Clinton - letting individuals invest part of their own Social Security money in stocks or other securities. All Gore can do is attack the plan as "risky."

That word pretty much sums up the substance of Gore's strategy: To attack Bush the man and his programs as full of risk. It isn't playing in Peoria, or anywhere else. Bush has opened up a sizable lead in the polls, and in the key Rust Belt states where the election will be won or lost: Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Illinois.

His secret is not the same as Clinton's. He has an equal abundance of charm, and he's certainly trying to seize the political center. But he's not trying to "triangulate" or "feel your pain." Instead, he comes across as a fair, reasonable person who says what he believes even if it defies the party catechism or agrees with an enemy's point of view.

In this, he scores higher than his political forebear, Bill Clinton, whose unfortunate bequest to his vice-president may be the inability to get people to believe a word he says.

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