he doesn't seem to have Israel in his
gut, like a Henry Jackson — or a
Ronald Reagan."
It is believed, for example, that in
Administration policy decisions re-
garding the Mideast, Bush often sides
with Defense Secretary Caspar Wein-
berger as opposed to Reagan and Sec-
retary of State George Shultz, who
tend to take a more sympathetic stand
toward Israeli interests.
The Bush trip to the Mideast was
no doubt motivated by an interest in
both domestic politics and Mideast
peace. The Vice President is the front-
runner to succeed Ronald Reagan as
the Republican Presiderttial candidate
in 1988, but he knows that Rep. Jack
Kemp, frequently mentioned as a rival
for the nomination, has close ties to
Israel and recently visited there. On a
broader level, Bush's aides sought to
enhance his image as a world leader
able to immerse himself in the com-
plexities of the Middle East by having
him meet with the leaders of Israel,
Egypt and Jordan. There was always
an outside chance that he could have a
direct role in moving the peace process
forward. If nothing else, though, the
visit would prove that Washington
continues to show a strong interest in
the process, has not abandoned the
Administration's 1982 peace proposal
for the region, and that Bush could
handle himself in personal meetings
with Mideast leaders.
The Vice President began his
journey with three days in Israel (his
second visit and first as Vice
President) accompanied, at their own
expense, by eight leaders of the Na-
tional Jewish Coalition, a Republican
group. Besides meeting Peres, Shamir
and other leaders, he visited historic
site'§ and met with a delegation of 18
Palestinian mayors, businessmen and
other notables.
In Jordan, Bush's next stop, he
had several meetings with King Hus-
sein and supported him in his dispute
with PLO leader Yassar Arafat. While
Bush was in Jordan, the U.S. an-
nounced that for the first time it will
funnel through Jordan a portion ($4.5
million) of American development aid
for Palestinians living on the West
Bank. Bush's trip ended with a visit to
Egypt, where he met with President
Mubarak and sought to explain how
the Gramm-Rudman legislation
would prohibit the U.S. from increas-
ing the kind of cash aid that Egypt
says she desperately needs.
►
During our White House inter-
view, the Vice President, who had re-
turned only the day before and who
acknowledged that his body clock was
still on Mideast time, was pleasant,
responsive and well informed as he sat
in a high-back chair next to the fire-
place in the "discussion" area of his
White House office. He touched on a
wide range of issues in response to his
questioners but rarely responded in
detail.
Despite various press reports de-
scribing the lack of tangible progress
made during the trip, Bush em-
phasized the positive aspects of his
visit and held out his view that peace
would come to the region in the next
ten years. "I don't think that's overly
optimistic," he said while noting that
he is "a perennial optimist — one has
to be when dealing with the Mideast."
He said he "came away from this trip
with more optimism because we were
able to get these three leaders (Israel's
Prime Minister Peres, Jordan's King
Hussein and Egypt's President
Mubarak) to agree on a statement of
common principles." The five-point
statement of common goals stressed a
desire for peace, the need for negotia-
Continued on next page
During his Middle East trip, Bush meets
with Israel's Yitzhak Shamir.
Bush referred to
a meeting with
Prime Minister
Peres "on a
kibbitz,"
mispronouncing
the word
"kibbutz."
Jewish journalists, including Jewish News editor Gary Rosenblatt, left front, meet with Vice President George Bush.
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