N.J. Leader Praises Wilson, but Defers Endorsement : Presidency: Gov. Christine Whitman, seen as a kindred spirit among moderate wing of GOP, says she is not ready to back any candidate.

Dashing the hopes of Pete Wilson’s nascent presidential campaign--at least for the time being--New Jersey governor and Republican rising star Christine Todd Whitman said Friday that she would not yet endorse a candidate in the presidential contest.

While she praised Wilson, and described him as a friend, Whitman appeared to place a higher premium on staying out of the fray and unifying the factions within her own state, which have already coalesced around the many competing Republican presidential candidates. She also has the luxury of time because New Jersey’s primary will not be held until June 4, 1996.

“I made the determination that I want things to play out a little bit more for the Republicans in our state,” Whitman told California political reporters at a breakfast in Hollywood. “I want to give everyone the opportunity to hear from them all.”

Whitman is seen as more ideologically attuned to Wilson than any of the other candidates. Whitman, Wilson and Massachusetts Gov. William Weld form a powerful element of what is left of the socially moderate wing of the GOP.

Weld, like Wilson and Whitman a supporter of abortion rights, recently endorsed the California governor. Asked whether Wilson had formally asked for Whitman’s endorsement during a private meeting in Los Angeles on Thursday night, Wilson spokesman Dan Schnur would say only that “they’ve certainly discussed the race.”

“Christie Whitman has become one of the leading voices in the national Republican Party over a very short time period,” Schnur added. “Her support for Gov. Wilson or any other candidate would be extremely helpful.”

As she concluded a two-day stop in Southern California--which included appearances at the Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan presidential libraries--Whitman walked a fine line between supporting the initial moves of the conservative Republican Congress and affirming her credentials as a social moderate.

For instance, Whitman forcefully defended congressional moves to reform welfare, noting that her state has taken steps on its own to help welfare recipients join the work force. Democrats have contended that by forwarding responsibility for welfare to the states--along with block grants of money--the congressional majority would be harming children currently supported by welfare.

“I don’t know of a governor on either side of the aisle--Republican or Democrat--who is going to let children starve,” she said. “This presumption that governors are heartless and Washington cares more about their people than they do is just totally wrong.”

But she also defended affirmative action, saying that proactive programs to include minorities and women in government contracting had worked in her state.

Whitman cautioned that Republicans have to guard against excessively heated rhetoric during the upcoming presidential campaign.

“You’ve got to try to make sure that what we’re doing and the message that’s being sent is a positive one, not a negative one,” the governor said.

Handicapping the presidential contest, Whitman said that she does not write off President Clinton’s chances for reelection, although she gives Republicans the edge.

“He is a very smart, able politician. Things are improving. The economy is improving. The unemployment rate is going down,” she said. But, she added, the public still distrusts Clinton because they do not perceive him to have delivered on campaign promises.