Party Head Criticizes Attacks on Clinton : Politics: Ronald Brown singles out Jerry Brown and Tsongas for calling the front-running Arkansas governor ‘unelectable.’ He says that could aid GOP.

WASHINGTON —  Democratic Chairman Ronald H. Brown criticized other Democrats on Monday for calling Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton “unelectable” and said Clinton will take “a giant step” toward locking up the party’s presidential nomination today if he wins the Illinois and Michigan primaries by the margins that polls suggest.

Clinton is heavily favored in both states, according to recent polls, and Brown, who strongly defended the governor against the political attacks that have dogged his campaign, clearly expects him to win handily.

Brown singled out Clinton’s two Democratic opponents--former Massachusetts Sen. Paul E. Tsongas and former California Gov. Edmund G. (Jerry) Brown Jr.--for their comments that the governor was “unelectable.” He said their assessments were inaccurate, were motivated by personal political interests and could undermine the Democratic nominee’s chances of victory in November.

Declaring Clinton would be a strong candidate against President Bush in the general election, Brown said the strength the Democratic front-runner has shown at the polls means “Americans evidently have a great deal of respect for someone who has stood up to the salvos that have been thrown his way.”

Brown called former Gov. Brown “out of line” for attacking Clinton and his wife, Hillary, during a televised debate among the three candidates in Chicago Sunday night. The former governor had accused the couple of conflicts of interest in connection with her law firm’s business contacts with the state of Arkansas. Clinton angrily denied the charge.

In making the allegation, the former governor cited a Washington Post article he said consumer advocate Ralph Nader brought to his attention during a telephone call. But Brown misquoted part of the article.

“Jerry Brown was out of line, and he was inaccurate in the report he was throwing about,” Brown declared. “He could get better opposition research than to talk to Ralph Nader over the telephone.”

The chairman said he “would like to stop” the personal attacks by Brown and intends to meet with him to discuss the matter. “But you can’t control Jerry Brown,” he said.

The chairman, declaring that Clinton has undergone more scrutiny than any political leader in the past 20 years, praised him for “taking all the shots and standing up there.”

Interviewed at a luncheon session with reporters, the chairman acknowledged that the Democratic race is not over and someone else still could be nominated, but he indicated he believes Clinton has a good chance of sewing up the nomination in early April after the New York primary.

Once it’s “obvious to any reasonable person” that a candidate has the support of enough delegates to win the nomination, he said, the other candidates should withdraw so that the party can focus on the general election.