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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Buchanan May Bolt Gop

Associated Press

With the Republican nomination now out of his reach, Pat Buchanan’s advisers are encouraging him to make an independent run for the White House, top aides said Thursday.

One aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, said four of Buchanan’s top advisers, including his campaign manager and sister, Bay, are “four-square behind the idea.”

Finance Chairman Scott McKenzie also favors the idea, but is concerned about whether the campaign could raise enough money for the effort, another Buchanan aide said.

Bay Buchanan had a “preliminary discussion” over lunch last week about a third-party bid with Howard Phillips, a member of the U.S Taxpayers Party’s executive committee, a third aide said.

The taxpayer’s party on Wednesday announced it would try to put Buchanan on the November ballot around the country. Bay Buchanan said then her brother was committed to running as Republican through the convention but no decision had been made on the offer.

Buchanan himself, campaigning Thursday in California, said he would meet next week with supporters in Virginia to discuss where to take his campaign’s momentum after the August Republican National Convention.

Asked three times if he was considering a third-party run, Buchanan would not flatly say no, responding that he will discuss his options with supporters and insisting he means to “reshape the Republican Party.”

Neither Bay Buchanan nor Phillips returned calls Thursday seeking comment.

One Buchanan aide said the odds of the commentator launching an outsider’s run in November had increased in recent days.

“A week ago, there was probably only a 20 percent chance this might happen,” said the aide. “Right now, staff support has solidified, and the odds are better than 50-50.”

Buchanan contributed to such speculation when he talked of plans to mail letters to 125,000 backers after Tuesday’s California primary asking for advice on what step he should take next.

While some Buchanan aides push the third-party effort, others, including spokesman Greg Mueller, have said in recent days that Buchanan’s strong Midwest showing with blue-collar Democrats and Perot voters qualifies him to be Dole’s running mate.

Aides said Buchanan’s willingness to embrace a third-party strategy could hinge in part on his treatment by Dole.

“Pat himself would still be open to the right kind of approach from Dole,” said one top Buchanan adviser. “But there has been a lot of bad blood between them so far.”

xxxx On the other hand Appearing on a live radio talk show in Glendale, Calif., on Thursday, Buchanan acknowledged that he probably would back Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole at the convention this summer, for a price. “I’ve never supported anyone other than the Republican nominee in my lifetime,” he said. “But I want to know, where is my party going now? We are going to go into that San Diego convention and make it a party it can and should be.”