Democrats, Republicans race to the wire

January 31, 2000 -- With Tuesday's New Hampshire primary just hours away, Democrat Bill Bradley has begun a series of sharp attacks on Vice President Al Gore's integrity.

This comes as Bradley's poll numbers in New Hampshire have fallen behind Gore's at a crucial time. The vice president overtook Bradley in Granite State polling after a strong win last week in the Iowa caucuses.

Until then, Bradley enjoyed somewhat of a lead in New Hampshire's polls, thanks in part to the state's large number of independent voters.

Bradley's aides say the confrontational style has been pushing their candidate upward once again in the polls.

Sunday, Bradley drew a standing-room-only crowd in Exeter, as he warned against voting for "a candidate who doesn't tell the truth."

Earlier that day at Franklin Pierce Law School in Concord, Bradley told 200 people crammed into a classroom that Gore needs to explain to Democrats his part in the "embarrassing" finance controversy surrounding his re-election with Clinton.

"Unless that explanation is forthcoming, the public will reject a candidate in the fall that fails to come to terms with these circumstances in our Democratic Party," Bradley said.

But, Gore and his supporters have fought back. During a campaign stop Sunday, Gore accused his rival of trading "character, courage and commitment" for "manipulative attack after manipulative attack."

The latest CNN-USA Today-Gallup poll in New Hampshire indicates that Gore could receive 51 percent of the vote. Bradley is looking at 45 percent. The margin of error is plus or minus three percentage points. Last week, Gore had a double-digit lead.

The Republicans

On the Republican side, the race is even closer. Texas Gov. George W. Bush also hopes to use his win in Iowa to bolster support in New Hampshire, where for months he has trailed Arizona Sen. John McCain in polls.

McCain skipped the Iowa caucuses and placed a distant fifth.

The debate between Bush and McCain during the last week has primarily hinged on tax cuts and entitlement spending.

Campaigning Sunday, McCain returned to his core supporters for votes -- veterans. He told an audience of veterans that he takes no vote for granted, and urged them all to go to the polls.

McCain also outlined his plan to place federal surplus money into the Social Security trust fund.

Under attack from candidates in both parties, Bush defended his tax cut on "Fox News Sunday" saying it is "reasonable" and that federal programs would not suffer.

Some polls currently indicate Bush is in the lead, while others have McCain edging farther ahead.