Gore Scores With Seattle Seniors

They could not be considered a scientific focus group, this collection of senior citizens who gathered to watch the second presidential debate of the season at a retirement center in Seattle.

But if their reactions are any indication of how seniors as a group will vote in November, then both candidates had better take notice.

For starters, all said they were pleased that the debate did not dwell on so-called seniors issues such as Medicare and Social Security, as the Boston debate did.

"I'm glad they brought up gun control and glad they brought up children… their health is more important in the long run," said Marian, a former teacher and counselor.

"They're the future of the country," added Libby, a lawyer.

"They hashed it over last week," said another.

All of the residents requested that only their first names be used in this story.

A CBS News/New York Times poll released last week suggests that this critical group of voters - whom both George W. Bush and Al Gore have sought to court over the past several months - is almost evenly divided between the two candidates.

But among the nine seniors assembled in front of the big screen TV at the University House, an apartment building for the elderly, it was a different story. All but one, a registered independent voter, said they planned to vote for Gore.

That's not surprising considering Seattle's Democratic reputation. But Washington itself is a swing state. While Gore currently leads by a thin margin in statewide polls, the state has chosen five Democrats and five Republicans in the past 10 presidential elections.

This gives the state "battleground" status and the parties are responding accordingly. And all of the seniors gathered to watch the debate in Seattle had had their fill of competing political ads on Medicare and prescription drugs.

But that won't prevent them from watching every minute of every debate.

In comparing the first two meetings between Gore and Bush, most found this one to be more civil, partly due to the format. They also assumed the candidates had been influenced by the press coverage over the past week.

"I thought Bush was more defensive than Gore," said Dorothy, a former college English teacher. She noted that Bush talked about having a "good heart" when Gore was pressing him on the facts about health care in Texas.

But Rex, the independent voter who says he is slightly leaning toward Bush, saw it differently: "To me, Al Gore is very defensive, both in his remarks and facial expressions. It seems he spends between 70-to-90 percent of his time defending himself."

Marian felt that Gore's makeup and his facial expressions had improved: "Gore kept an unexpressive face while Bush was talking, as opposed to last week when he grimaced… (and) this time, they didn't repeat themselves as often."

While all said they paid more attention to conten than style, each seemed more apt to note the character traits of the two men when asked to size up the candidates.

"Gore seems to me to be a more sensible person. I trust what he says more, even though he makes mistakes," said Dorothy, who was glad to see the vice president admit fault for getting some facts wrong in the previous debate.

"Gore comes across as far more presidential… his responses to foreign policy, Medicare… he seems to look at the bigger picture," said Mary, a former law school librarian.

"Gore came across as more statesmanlike… he stuck to the point and didn't wander around as Bush did," said Marian.

But Rex, the lone Bush supporter and a former policeman, said he could not separate Gore from his boss Bill Clinton, for whom he has "no respect … There's a little bit of Bill Clinton that's rubbed off on Al Gore. I place some importance on that. I don't know how much."

And Libby, the lawyer, said her primary concern remains the future of the Supreme Court, which the candidates addressed last week. "The Supreme Court may have far more lasting influence on this country than any politician in the next four years," she said. "I would rather have Al Gore initiate a nominee."

Finally, none seemed to mind moderator Jim Lehrer's last two questions to the candidates, in which he held them accountable for the attacks and name-calling by their two campaigns.

"It's important to get that out… it gets in the way of substantive issues," said Mary.