Reply #5: 1992 NY Times - Clinton Trounced in Vermont Caucus [View All]

April 1, 1992

THE 1992 CAMPAIGN; Brown Trounces Clinton in Caucuses in Vermont
By B. DRUMMOND AYRES JR.,

Former Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. of California finished an easy first today in Vermont's Democratic Presidential caucuses, his anti-establishment message drowning out the more conventional voice of Gov. Bill Clinton of Arkansas.

With nearly 95 percent of the state's 246 caucuses reporting, Mr. Brown captured 46 percent of the support, to 17 percent for Mr. Clinton, a decisive edge that gave him a lift going into the New York primary next week. In Third: 'Uncommitted'

But Mr. Brown's triumph was tempered somewhat, and Mr. Clinton was politically embarrassed, when a fourth of the Democrats attending the caucuses cast their votes for "uncommitted" and the remaining support went to a scattering of other candidates, including former Senator Paul E. Tsongas of Massachusetts, who dropped out of the race two weeks ago. The unusually heavy "uncommitted" vote served notice once again of dissatisfaction with the Presidential field.

Fourteen national convention delegates were at stake here. They will be allotted proportionally to each candidates receiving at least 15 percent of the voter.

In the Republican caucuses, with 19 delegates at stake, President Bush coasted to victory over Patrick J. Buchanan. With 62 percent of the caucuses reporting, Mr. Bush was ahead of the conservative columnist by 80 percent to 2 percent.

But as on the Democratic side, there was a significant "uncommitted" vote, 17 percent, underscoring discontent in the Republican electorate, too.

"What happened in Vermont is just the beginning," Mr. Brown told a cheering crowd of supporters at a union meeting tonight in Manhattan. "It will keep on rolling because it isn't about politics-as-usual."

He later told reporters, "It gives us an extra oomph, a little push, as we go into what is going to be a very, very tough final week in New York."

Governor Clinton, also in New York, said he was pleased with the results because he would score well in the delegate count. "It's not bad news," he said. "We didn't go at all. It's a caucus, not a primary. Governor Brown campaigned there, and I didn't."

Craig Fuller, Mr. Clinton's campaign manager for the state, also played down the loss.

"Our real effort is elsewhere," he said. "I thought myself that we could do better here if we tried. But the decision about the level of effort was not mine to make."

Here in Burlington, former State Representative Ben Truman was jubilant about the strength of the undecided vote.

"Uncommitted is going to have a lot of power in the 1992 election, more power than in any election in a very long time," he said after nominating "uncommitted" in the city caucus. "Those who have doubts about the other candidates are holding back and the power is building."

Mr. Truman said he had been in touch with political acquaintances around the state in an effort to give some cohesion to the drive to get caucus-goers to vote "undecided." Brown Makes Effort

Neither Mr. Brown nor Mr. Clinton poured major resources into Vermont. But Mr. Brown made a stronger effort than Mr. Clinton, sensing from the start that the Green Mountain State would be receptive to his message, given the state's history of liberalism, its commitment to such causes as the environment and women's rights.

Mr. Clinton did not visit the Vermont, though he sent his wife, Hillary, for a brief appearance earlier in the month. Mr. Brown made a single appearance, on Sunday, drawing a crowd of about 2,000 people in Burlington and about 1,500 people in Montpelier, the capital.

Mr. Clinton's campaign relied on the endorsements of some of the state's leading Democrats, among them Governor Howard B. Dean and the Speaker of the Vermont House, Ralph G. Wright.

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