European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 31, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday october 31, 1992 election 92 the stars and stripes Page 7 Fri played fair in sting chief says from wire reports Washington Fri director William s. Sessions says his Agency was discreet and fair when it mount Dan undercover sting operation offering an alleged Ross Perot audio tape tothe Bush Campaign chairman in Texas. This method was the Only Way to determine fairly and discreetly the credibility of the allegations of Republican dirty tricks sessions said in a letter to the editor of the Newyork times published Friday. The target of the sting Jim Oberwetter said wednesday that Perot and the Fri owe him an apology. Oberwetter accused Perot of trying to put me in the jail House by having an Fri undercover agent offer to sell him the audio tape supposedly of Perot and documents from the Independent candidate s office. Oberwetter rejected the offer. Not too sick to run Albany . A state senator under indictment for five years is too sick to stand trial but Well enough Torun unopposed for re election tuesday. Sen. Howard Babbush s Only potential opponent this year was knocked off last month s democratic primary ballot because she was eight petition signatures Short of a required 500. Babbush 51, who has represented Brooklyn District since 1976, has suffered a series of health problems inthe last two years that culminated in quadruple bypass surgery last november. This Guy has been absent fro the legislature so much that they be been having sightings of him like Elvis Presley now said Janice Robertson who tried to run against Babbush. Babbush said he sees no inconsistency in being too sick to stand trial but Well enough to be senator. Last year he earned nearly $72,000 despite attending Only thereof 85 session Days. This year he made 29 of 74 sessions. Babbush was indicted in 1987 for allegedly putting Campaign workers on the legislative payroll in 1986. Stockdale at Salute Washington Independent vice presidential candidate James b. Stockdale came to the Pentagon on Friday for the presentation of two Navy leadership awards that Bear the retired vice Admiral s name. The no. 2 Man on Ross Perot ticket brushed aside reporters questions As he entered the  s nothing political about this award he said. The awards Are granted annually by the Navy to the commanders of ships submarines or squadrons one in the Pacific Fleet and one in the Atlantic Fleet. This year s awards go to  Cavey of Kalamazoo mich., the commanding officer of the ballistic missile submarine Daniel Boone and cmdr. Jonathan Greenert of Butler,pa., the commander of the attack submarine Honolulu. The award is a Bronze plaque with a three dimensional Relief of the likeness of the vice Admiral the statement said. They were being presented by the chief of naval operations adm. Frank b. Kelso ii. Polls show Clinton clinging to a Lead of 3 to 9 Points new York a new polls re leased by three television networks show Democrat Bill Clinton leading president Bush by 3,5 and 9 percentage Points. Clinton s biggest Lead 44 percent to 35percent for Bush was in an Abc news tracking poll of 903 Likely voters surveyed tuesday and wednesday. Independent Ross Perot dropped 4 Points to 16 per cent but the poll had a 4-Point margin of error. A one night poll taken wednesday for Abc news and the Wall Street journal had Clinton at 43 percent Bush at 38 percent and Perot at 11 percent. That was a 2-Point gain for Bush and a4-Point drop for Perot from a comparable poll the previous night. But the change were within the 5-Point margin of error for the poll of 500 Likely voters. The poll Gallup takes daily for Annand Usa today had Clinton at 41 per cent Bush 38 percent and Perot 16 per cent. Those figures which have a 3-Point margin of error Are based on an average of results from polls taken tuesday and wednesday of More than 1,657 Likely Vot ers. The Gallup tracking poll swung heavily in Bush s favor tuesday leading to re ports that the race could be a dead  the 3-Point Lead reported thurs Day also could be a statistical dead heat several competing polls show a larger Clinton Lead. All three polls were released thursday. Lead in final poll by organization 20 Gordon Black Usa today 25 time 24 Abc 24 new York times lbs 21 actual margin 18 Gallup Newsweek 17 15 Washington Post Abc 14 10 actual margin 10 Harris National Public radio 12 Roper 10 k. Associated press Abc 7 5 a Abc Louis Harris 5 Gallup 3 \ lbs new York times 1 Gallup 12 Gordon Black can Usa today 10 Washington Post Abc 10 lbs new York times 9y Krc american political network 9 actual margin 8 Harris 5 .,.,. Abc Wall Street journal 5 1980 Reagan Over Carter by 10 Points average poll prediction 4 Points 1984 Reagan Over Mondale by 18 Points. Average poll prediction 18 Points 1988 Bush Over Dukakis by 8 Points average poll prediction 9 Points source Media polls in America chapter by Michael r. Kagay �1992,the Brookings institution. A virtual dead heat just Days before tuesday s elec Tion pollster Ellen Pirro questioned the Validity of a polls overdone expert complains Chicago up opinion polls have stopped measuring Public sentiment and have instead become a Force for molding it a Veteran pollster said thurs  a can new York times poll putting presi Dent Bush and democratic challenger Bill Clinton in  said such polls increasingly Are based on the opinion of Couch potatoes unlikely to actually get out and vote. Polls were terrific in the 60s and 70s," Pirro a associate professor of political science at Iowa state University of science and technology in Ames said in a Telephone interview. They had John of Kennedy winning and Youcan t argue with Success. Everyone started copying  we re overdoing them. Everyone thinks they be got to do a  said candidates Are using polls to galvanize support and shape rather than measure Public Opin  they re trying very very hard to do is establish a bandwagon effect she said. They re saying Here s the Winner. You be got to get on Board real Quick. Now s the time it gives a Campaign Momen  a very slight margin can be used by a Campaign to Start that kind of  also every National state and local candidate is polling and the population is Over polled she said that she said has created some problems people Are getting tired of receiving Calls from pollsters Tew people actually Are Home and pollsters Calls More frequently Are answered by answering machines than people and More and More people Are opting for unlisted numbers. As a result polls often Are wildly skewed she said. Candidates can t shake negative images Detroit a american voters this year May elect a president they Don t like. The negative poll ratings Are unprecedented pollsters say. In some surveys All three candidates were viewed More unfavourably than favourably. That Means the Winner whoever he is May begin his term with the highest negative ratings in modern polling history. There in t anybody they re truly Inlove with said pollster Del Ali vice president of Mason Dixon Media re search. There s doubt even among their  the lbs news new York times pol taken oct. 20-23, a National Survey of 1,467 voters illustrates the Point. Thirty five percent of those queried said they had a favourable opinion of pres ident Bush while 45 percent said their opinion was unfavourable with the rest undecided or waiting for More information. For Democrat Bill Clinton it was 33 there in t anybody they re truly in love with. There s doubt even among their supporters Dei ail pollster percent favourable 39 percent unfavourable and 28 percent in neither Camp. Per of s was 29 percent favourable and 32 per cent unfavourable. The oct. 20-22 Harris poll asked peo ple to rate the Job Bush was doing and what kind of Job they thought Clinton or Perot might do. The numbers for Bush were almost 2-1 negative Clinton came close to breaking even at 47 percent Posi Tive 49 percent negative and Perot was40 percent positive and 56 percent negative. Undoubtedly part of the explanation lies in a year of rough politics and a three Way race. Clinton was buffeted during the Prima Ries and recently again by Bush wit questions about the draft and marital in Fidelity. Bush s negatives went up during the gop convention and heavy Advertis ing by the candidates has often been aimed More at tearing the opponents Down than building the candidate up. In addition the three candidates have spent a tremendous amount of time in front of the voters on television talk shows speaking off the cuff. It s an environment where somebody says something and the next Day somebody tears it apart said Linda Divall a Republican pollster. Frank Newport editor in chief of the Gallup poll said that never in the history of their negative positive ratings has candidate with a higher negative number won the White House. More often than not even the losing candidate has scored Well in past years