Reagan Says He Is No Lame Duck Despite Scandal

WASHINGTON —  President Reagan alluded Monday to his problems from the Iran- contra affair but told a group of longtime supporters that he is not ready to draw the curtain with 18 months left in his presidency.

“We’ve come this far together, but the journey isn’t over,” Reagan said. “We’ve won many battles and our brows are covered with sweat and our bodies have wounds, but let our hearts remain full and strong.

“Nothing has been said in the last six months that changes one basic truth: For our nation and for the cause of freedom and democracy around the world, America must stand by the freedom fighters in Nicaragua.

‘No Post-Reagan Era’

“All those who talk about lame ducks and the post-Reagan era are dead wrong. There will be no post-Reagan era because there’s been no Reagan era in the way those people mean it. This has been the era of the American people. Leaders may come and go.”

Reagan, speaking to about 150 activists who supported him in presidential campaigns since 1976, warned against allowing political fratricide among the crowded field of Republicans seeking to succeed him.

“We must hold the White House in 1988,” Reagan said. “And let me just say I don’t plan to sit on the sidelines. I plan to campaign for our party’s nominee.”