The Nation - News from Jan. 18, 1988

Democratic presidential candidate Bruce Babbitt blamed his “spontaneity” for what he called his inappropriate comment that made light of a campaign putting the pictures of missing children on milk cartons. “I have a tendency to have fun during the debates and to move toward a certain amount of spontaneity,” the former Arizona governor told reporters during a campaign stop in Pittsburgh, Pa. “Sometimes, the risk of being spontaneous, kind of throwing away your script, once in a while this kind of thing happens.” During Friday’s debate in Des Moines, Babbitt tried to make light of Tennessee Sen. Albert Gore Jr.’s decision to de-emphasize his presence in Iowa. “It’s good to see you back,” Babbitt told Gore. “I thought they might start putting your picture on milk cartons.”