Bush admits talking
with business chairman
■ TheTexas governor says
the conversation had noth
ing to do with a state probe
into the business and does
not contradict his affidavit.
AUSTIN (AP) — Gov. George W.
Bush, who filed an affidavit swearing
he had no conversations with officials
of a funeral home business about a state
probe, spoke briefly with the company
chairman last year but not about the
case, Bush’s spokeswoman said
Wednesday.
ousn, tne Republican presidential
front-runner, stands by his affidavit,
said his spokeswoman Linda Edwards.
Bill Miller, a spokesman for the
funeral home company, described the
1998 encounter as a brief, ’’jocular” one
that didn’t concern the investigation.
The governor’s sworn statement
was filed to try to dismiss a subpoena
for Bush to give a deposition in a whis
tle-blower lawsuit brought by Eliza
May, the fired executive director of the
Texas Funeral Service Commission.
Ms. May led the agency’s investigation
into Houston-based Service Corp.
International.
Bush said in his July 20 affidavit, ”1
have had no conversations with SCI
officials, agents, or representatives
concerning the investigation or any dis
pute arising from it.”
On April 15, 1998, Bush and
Robert Waltrip, SCI founder and chair
man, had an ’’off-the-cuff” exchange at
the Capitol lasting a few seconds, Ms.
Edwards said.
The exchange occurred, said SCI
spokesman Bill Miller, when Waltrip
and SCI lobbyist Johnnie B. Rogers
came to the governor’s office to hand
deliver a copy of a letter regarding the
investigation to Joe Allbaugh, then
Bush’s chief of staff and now his presi
dential campaign manager.
The letter was addressed to the
neaa or the huneral Service
Commission and complained of tactics
being used by commission staff, Miller
said. He said Waltrip and Rogers were
waiting to give a copy of the letter to
Allbaugh when Bush walked out, on
his way elsewhere.
Newsweek magazine, in its Aug. 16
edition, reported that, according to
Rogers, Bush said when he spotted
Waltrip, ”Hey Bobby, are those people
still messing with you?”
When Waltrip responded that they
were, the magazine reported, Rogers
said the governor turned to him and
said, ”Hey, Johnnie B. Are you taking
care of him?” Rogers said he replied,
’Tm doing my best, governor,” accord
ing to the magazine.
Miller said that is Rogers’ recollec
tion of the exchange. Rogers didn’t
immediately return a telephone call
from The Associated Press.
”It was just a jocular exchange
between Waltrip and Bush. It didn’t evi
dence anything,” Miller said. ”It was
just an acknowledgment of presence. It
wasn’t anything about the investiga
tion.”
Ms. Edwards said Bush doesn’t
recall exactly what was said, but that he
didn’t discuss the case.
’’Governor Bush had a very brief,
off-the-cuff exchange in passing with
Mr. Waltrip that day. Literally, he was
on his way out the door,” Ms. Edwards
said. ”The exchange lasted less than 20
seconds. ... He did not discuss the
case.”
Ms. May s suit alleges that SCI,
whose political action committee gave
Bush $35,000 in 1996 and 1997,
worked with Bush’s staff to interfere
with the investigation. The defendants
are the funeral commission, SCI and
Waltrip.
Bush said in his affidavit that he
had no personal knowledge of relevant
facts of the investigation and ’’never
asked anyone to take a role or to
become involved in any way” in it.
The company has said the dispute is
between Ms. May and the state, and
believes its inclusion in the suit is a
publicity stunt. Miller said: ”We didn’t
interfere with any investigation.”
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Gore warns against
attacks from GOP
IViAiOl-LALLI UWJNI, Iowa (AF)
—Vice President Af^Jore, seeking a
slice of attention from the GOP-dri
ven media frenzy, warned
Wednesday against ”a right-wing U
tum” from Republicans desperate to
© win back the White House.
’’They are hungry to roll back
this progress,” Gore said. ’They are
hungry to win this election.”
Gore and former Sen. Bill
Bradley of New Jersey swept
through separate sections of the state
Wednesday, both focusing on farm
issues in hopes of drawing a contrast
with Republicans vying for a high
profile straw poll on Saturday.
Bradley spelled out his plan for
dealing with a sour farm economy at
the Dunlap Livestock Auction. He
endorsed die $11-billion emergency
aid package for farmers that the
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