European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 14, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 a the stars and stripes Friday february 14, 1992clinton releases letter about draft Friday february 14, 1992 Roth program at campaigning president Bush greets Edythe Goldstein As he mingles with the crowd at a Bedford ., shopping mall. Larouche Backer held for baiting Bush Bedford  A president Bush was confronted wednesday by a supporter of political extremist Lyndon Larouche who grabbed Bush s Arm and refused to let go until the secret service stepped in. A when Are you going to let Larouche out of jail a said the Man according to White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwa Ter. A a he a in jail where he belongs Quot rejoined Bush according to a reporter who witnessed the encounter. The episode occurred at a shopping mall where the president Shook hands with hundreds of people during a Campaign visit to the first primary state. Shoppers in the mall had been screened for weapons by the secret service. The Man identified As Roger Powers Ham 41, grabbed Bush sarm and pulled him closer said Fitzwater and other White House aides. A your agents had to break his grip a said secret service spokesman Carl Meyer. A they escorted him out and he was arrested by the state police for disorderly  Larouche and six supporters were convicted in 1988 of fraud and tax evasion in a fund raising scheme prosecutors said involved $30 million in defaulted Loans. Larouche is serving a 15-year sentence at a prison in Rochester Minn. From prison Larouche is running for president As a Democrat. In december the Federal election commission denied Public financing saying he had a history of fraudulent fund raising. By the los Angeles times Manchester  Arkansas gov. Bill Clinton trying to pre empt an escalation of the controversy about his draft status during the Vietnam War wednesday released a letter he wrote in 1969 to the head of Roth at the University of  the letter dated dec. 3, 1969, Clinton thanked col. Eugene Holmes for a saving me from the draft and apologized for having a deceived you by not explaining the full depth of his opposition to the War and the draft itself. The previous summer Holmes had arranged for Clinton to enter an the University of Arkansas thus giving him a draft deferment. At the time Clinton was a Rhodes scholar at Oxford University in England. Clinton explained in the letter that a few weeks after being approved for Roth he had decided to reject that option and re enter the draft Pool for two reasons moral concern that he had compromised his principles to a protect myself from physical harm a and a desire to a maintain my political viability within the  he had considered becoming a draft resister he wrote but decided to a accept the draft in spite of my beliefs a a for years i have worked to prepare myself for a political life characterized by both practical political ability and a concern for rapid social Progress a he wrote. A it is a life i still feel compelled to try to  Clinton released the letter after receiving a copy from Abc news. The candidate said he hoped voters would read the letter which be plans to print in full As an advertisement in new Hampshire a largest newspaper Friday. They will see a a conflicted and thoughtful Young Many who a loved his country but hated the War a who a wanted to go Home and do what i could to work for Progress a he said. The Impact of the controversy Likely will remain unclear for several More Days. Initial news reports on local new Hampshire area television stations were largely favourable to Clinton but by late evening the news shows were describing the incident As a new a a crisis for his  of Vietnam haunts rising politicians by Jill Lawrence associated press Washington a like Post traumatic stress Vietnam wont go away. The conflicts that Tore at the nation 25 years ago Are being played out in the presidential Campaign among the first generation of candidates Young enough to have been caught in the net of a War wed rather forget. Vietnam was a no win proposition two decades ago when these 40-something politicians first faced it As draft age youths. Its shaping up the same Way this year As the democrats pursue their presidential dreams. Nebraska sen. Bob Kerrey went to Vietnam lost part of his leg in a grenade explosion and won the medal of Honor. But his wartime heroism a Central part of his Campaign Isnit translating into political support. Arkansas gov. Bill Clinton did no to serve. But he s paying a High Price now for the tortured twists and turns he took before drawing a never called lottery number. His front runner status in new Hampshire Sladoff primary is gone. A if you offer a plate filled with Vietnam memories people Are going to push that plate away and look for something else a said Mark Mellman a democratic strategist. A a it a the last thing they want to think  and yet they May be forced to As baby Boom politicians ascend to the National stage and confront their past. Quot probably the next two or three presidential campaigns Are going to be haunted. It started with the Quayle flurry a said sociologist Todd Gitlin of the University of California at Berkeley. Vice president Dan Quayle was the first Vietnam aged candidate on a National ticket. His candidacy brought harsh questions about his National guard service a did he pull strings to get in was it hypocritical to serve that Way if he supported the War there were few definitive answers and there probably never will be. A a whole generation of Middle class Guys faced a moral anguish and resolved it in a variety of ways. In a not sure there were any clean outcomes a not with this sort of morality play a Gitlin said. Clinton who attended Georgetown Oxford and Yale during the Vietnam Era was typical of his generation and especially of Young men at elite universities. A every student 1 had tried to get out of going to Vietnam a said Erwin Hargrove now a Vanderbilt professor who taught at Brown University in Providence r.i., during the 1960s. Two democratic presidential candidates besides Clinton did not serve in the military a former California gov. Jerry Brown and former Massachusetts sen. Paul Tsongas Iowa sen. Tom Harkin was a Navy Pilot during the Vietnam War. Kerrey graduated from the University of Nebraska and was about to be drafted into the army he decided to join the Navy instead. He was chosen for their elite special service the seals and went to Vietnam Gung to about his Mission. But he returned bitter and disabled and eventually became an anti War protester. Kerrey a own journey reflects the ambivalence and confusion americans feel about Vietnam to this Day and perhaps explains Why his War hero status has not boosted his Campaign. A people done to know what to make of it Alt. Its very volatile. Kerrey has found it difficult to turn it into a political advantage to make it relevant a said pollster Stan Greenberg a Clinton adviser. Presidents since George Washington have Ridden their War records to the White House suggesting that Kerrey theoretically is on the right track when he emphasizes his. But Vietnam was a different kind of War. Quot this whole Aura of military service As a prerequisite for political leadership is largely gone. Its been erased a Mellman said. He said Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf the desert storm commander was considered candidate material until polls showed he would do poorly. And then there was the persian Gulf combat Pilot who ran for City Council in Columbus Ohio on Bis War heroics. A the was trounced a Mellman said. A nobody