Clinton raps Cheney on Mandela resolution vote

From staff and wire reports

CHICAGO (CNN) -- President Clinton took aim Sunday at Republican vice presidential hopeful Dick Cheney, saying a controversial 1986 vote Cheney cast in the House of Representatives on former South African President Nelson Mandela -- while Mandela was still imprisoned in South Africa -- "takes your breath away."

The vote was on a House resolution calling for the release of Mandela from prison and for recognition of the African National Congress, which Mandela headed. Cheney voted against the resolution.

"Now all the big publicity is about in the last few days [is] an amazing vote cast by their nominee for vice president when he was in Congress against letting Nelson Mandela out of jail," Clinton said. "That takes your breath away."

Cheney defended the vote in an appearance on CNN's "Late Edition" earlier Sunday, saying the ANC "at the time was viewed as a terrorist organization and had a number of interests that were fundamentally inimical to the U.S." He said 180 House members voted against the non-binding resolution.

Clinton made his comments during a Democratic National Committee lunch in Chicago, using the Mandela vote to illustrate the differences between Republicans and Democrats running this fall.

"If I were them, I'd be trying to obscure the differences between us too, because it's the only way they can win. I mean, it's a good strategy and they're doing it very well," Clinton said. So Democrats must point out differences, he added.

He also again attacked Republicans for delaying his African American and Hispanic judicial nominees, many of whom have been blocked for months and in some cases for years. The president referred to them as being held in "political jail" by senators who don't want minorities in federal judgeships.

And he tried to take credit for the strong economy on behalf of the party, saying "If you want this thing to go on, everybody who wants to live like a Republican needs to vote Democrat this year."

Following the DNC speech, which was expected to raise about $250,000, Clinton was scheduled to address the Association of Trial Lawyers of America 2000 annual convention.

CNN Producer Timothy McCaughan and Reuters contributed to this report.