DATE: Thursday, September 25, 1997 TAG: 9709250383 SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL SOURCE: BY ERIKA REIF, STAFF WRITER DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG LENGTH: 71 lines
During a speech that moved from prayerful to patriotic, former Vice President Dan Quayle hinted Wednesday night that he could lead the United States in a spiritual revival as president.
Quayle addressed the issue of persecution of Christians worldwide to an audience of nearly 700 seniors at a Southern Baptist conference at the College of William and Mary.
At the close of his speech, he raised his voice, saying, ``The real test of leadership is going to be who is going to stand up to this problem - the persecution of our Christian brothers and sisters around the world.
``I believe it should be the responsibility of the next president of the United States to pursue this with vigor.''
During an interview earlier in the evening, Quayle said he would make his decision in 1999 on running for president.
```I would like to be president someday. I will run for president someday,'' Quayle said, sporting a navy blue tie dotted with gold elephants.
``I just haven't decided if I will run in 2000.''
Quayle was the featured speaker of the program ``Celebrating America,'' part of a four-day religious convention held by Mountain Top Conferences, a division of Phil Waldrep Ministries.
Palmer Tillis was one of many who traveled by bus with a church group. He came with his wife, Patty, and 14 members of Anastasia Baptist Church in St. Augustine, Fla.
Tillis said he was attending for the fellowship and hadn't known that Quayle would speak.
``That's not what drew us here, but I believe in what he said,'' Tillis said. ``We've been married 49 years and we believe in family values.''
Opera glasses gave Tillis a good view of Quayle against an American flag backdrop.
During the first portion of his speech, Quayle thanked and prayed for armed forces veterans like Tillis, who served 40 years in the Army and the Army National Guard.
The majority of the World War II-generation audience stood when asked whether they had served.
The Rev. Greg Robbins, a fighter pilot from 1979 to 1981, brought in a group of 18 seniors from Cottage Hill Baptist Church in Pleasant Grove, Ala.
When asked if it bothered him that Quayle used family influence to get into the Indiana National Guard in 1969 and possibly avoided combat in Vietnam, Robbins said, ``I would think most people in here don't even think about it.
``His relationship with the Lord is the reason most people are here tonight.''
During the interview, Quayle said that America's next leader ``should have a clear vision for America . . . a smaller, more efficient government, lower taxes, strong national defense and a commitment to making the American family strong.''
In his speech, he referred several times to a study done on ``soccer moms,'' mothers of children who play soccer.
Although they were generally optimistic about the future, Quayle said, ``Less than 50 percent of the soccer moms believed that their son or daughter out there was going to have more opportunities than they had. . . . They see a genuine moral decline in America.''
Quayle suggested adding ``respect'' and ``responsibility'' to the three ``R's'' of education.
He then quipped that based on his experience, ``It wouldn't hurt if they teach a little more spelling, too.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
LAWRENCE JACKSON/The Virginian-Pilot
Former Vice President Dan Quayle spoke to a group at a Southern
Baptist conference at the College of William and Mary on Wednesday.
He says the next president should pursue the issue of Christian
persecution. Quayle said he would decide in 1999 whether he'll run
for president.
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