NEW YORK -- Edmund 'Jerry' Brown, fighting an uphill battle against Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton, Wednesday urged hundreds at a Manhattan rally to join his fight against the power brokers who he said have failed Americans.
After accepting the backing of the Utility Workers Union of America, the former California governor marched downtown to meet Jesse Jackson and deliver 102,000 voter registration forms to the Board of Elections.
At a rally in Union Square, Brown launched into an attack on Clinton, linking him to President Bush by calling him an 'elite' candidate who is running with the backing of party regulars who have helped ruin the American economy, but still seek to 'reward themselves for continuing failure.'
'I'm running against an opponent who is the very symbol of a system and politics that doesn't work,' Brown told about 700 people. 'We're here to take back our country.'
Brown said Clinton can't help working people or the poor 'when he's held on a leash by the people who got us into this mess.'
Bush and Clinton both support 'a new world order -- 10,000 miles away' that neglects the needs of Americans who need jobs, Brown said.
'They cannot vote to bail out the family but only the S&L's,' he said.
Some people chanted, 'Take it back, U.S.A.,' during Brown's appearance.
Mayra Riesman was standing on the corner when she saw Brown passing by and decided to joined the march.
'Two weeks ago, I made fun of Jerry Brown,' she said, but 'Clinton to me is as phony as a $3 bill. I'm a Democrat and I don't believe him.'
Brown hailed a new Marist poll released Wednesday that showed Clinton losing ground among Democratic voters in New York, saying it 'shows that people believe there is a chance to overcome the politics that isn't working.'
'I'm trying to break the stranglehold of the money-makers who own Clinton,' he said.
Brown and Clinton appeared in a debate Tuesday night at Lehman College in the Bronx, and were scheduled to meet face-to-face several more times before next Tuesday's New York primary.
The Clinton camp hoped additional debates would stem sagging support for the candidate as reflected in a Marist Institute for Public Opinion survey released Wednesday.
The poll show Clinton leading Brown 36.7 percent to 26 percent, down from a lead of 43.2 percent to 26.1 percent last week. It also showed a jump in Brown's 'unfavorable' rating, which some experts attributed to voter discomfort over Brown's flat-tax proposal.
Brown defended the idea Wednesday, saying, 'It's going to create millions of jobs.'
Jackson added that he believed there was room for discussion on the tax plan and that it could be modified. Brown said he was open to suggestions of a plan that might work better.
In front of the Board of Elections office, Brown again said he wanted Jackson as his running mate.
'We're going to make him available as the next vice president,' he told the cheering crowd.
Jackson, who has not endorsed either of the Democratic candidates, said he was not thinking about running, adding that the issue for him was increasing voter registration.
He added, however, that if he were drafted at the Democratic convention, 'I would be honored to accept.'
Jackson also did not rule out meeting with Clinton to discuss the issues.
