Dole Sets his Sights on November

WASHINGTON, D.C.: With a third of the delegates needed to win the Republican nomination, Bob Dole is looking ahead to the fall campaign. At a waterfront rally in Tampa, Dole told supporters "Let me say as the front-runner and maybe the presumptive nominee . . . I think it's time now to bring our party together and start to focus on our real political target, Bill Clinton." With no one claiming the mantle of outsider, a race between Clinton and Dole means that the election is likely to be fought in Washington. For Dole, Congress will provide one way stake out differences between himself and President Clinton. "Dole has made it very clear that he will not step down as Majority Leader," reports TIME's Karen Tumulty. "And now he needs the position more than ever. It gives Dole stature, a platform and plenty of media exposure." Using his position as Senate Majority Leader to full advantage, Dole will try to usher a number of bills through the Senate for Clinton to address. "The agenda will be drastically scaled back from last year's bold Republican initiatives," says Tumulty. "And Dole will compromise on issues like regulatory reform and some form of line-iten veto to get them signed into law." But Tumulty notes that Dole will not compromise on welfare reform and tax cuts aimed at families with children. A presidential veto on these issues might even serve to underscore the basic differences between Dole and Clinton on issues Clinton ran on in 1992.