Texas billionaire Ross Perot, who has remained vague on many issues, came out for the first time in opposition to prayer in school during an appearance on an ABC news program late Monday night.
“If it’s going to disrupt the school system,” the would-be president said, “let’s do it at home and when you get to school. Let’s stick to the strong moral and ethical standards that create a great society.”
Perot touched on several other issues in the 90-minute question-and-answer show, including his views on Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
“Slam that (oil) embargo in on that guy hard and let him twist in the wind,” said the maverick though still-undeclared candidate when asked what he would do if Saddam Hussein invaded Saudi Arabia.
Perot also spent time trying to refute the White House’s recent characterization of him as a paranoid sleuth with a penchant for investigating people’s private lives.
The recent feuding over this question between President Bush and Perot may have stopped Perot’s surge of popularity in the polls. On Tuesday, The Washington Post reported that for the first time a Post-ABC News poll shows Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton leading the presidential race, with Perot second and Bush last. But the margins are statistically insignificant.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
