House Returns Despite Fears of Duke-Bashing

The state House of Representatives reconvened yesterday to discuss the Senate's recently passed auto insurance bill and to discuss overriding a vetoed $91 million aid package for cities and towns.

Speaker of the House George Keverian (D-Everett) called the chamber back into session after a three-month recess, fulfilling his promise to reconvene the House as soon as the Senate passed the state auto-insurance bill. That happened on October 17.

The House sent the Senate version of the insurance biil to committee and began debate on the first of the two aid packages that Gov. Michael S. Dukakis vetoed in his spring budget-cutting process.

Democrats had feared that a reconvened House would give Republican members the chance to attack Dukakis' record and, indirectly, his presidential campaign.

But Al Frezza of Speaker Keverian's office said yesterday, "There will be some Dukakis-bashing and there will be some Republican-bashing today, no matter what happens."

On the other hand, Jordan St. John, press secretary to House Minority Leader Steven D. Pierce (R-Hampden), denied there would be any "Dukakis-bashing".

"The charge of Dukakis-bashing would be true only if there were no real state issues at hand," he said. "It's unfair to ask the legislature, which is constitutionally mandated, to roll over and play dead simply for the national election."

Frezza, of Keverian's office, also cited pressing state issues as causes for reconvention--the largest of which was a Republican drive to override Dukakis' veto of a $91 million "local and additional assistance" package for cities and towns from surplus lottery receipts.

"It goes both ways--some Democrats do want to override, but the majority of Democrats...will go along with the Governor," said Frezza.

"If the veto is overridden, the $91 million will have to be found elsewhere in the budget, probably from Human Services," said Larry Kraus, an aide to Rep. Saundra Graham (D-Cambridge).

St. John said Pierce would also work to override vetoes and restore cuts in many welfare and human service programs while simultaneously cutting or reducing funding for many "unneeded bureaucratic and administrative functions" to keep the budget balanced.

"The reality of it is that it has nothing to do with the campaign, only state issues," he said. "The question of whether or not there will be fallout is totally dependent on what the governor has done or will do."