Former VP Quayle says straw poll not a sham

Former Vice President Dan Quayle says this Saturday’s Iowa Republican PartyStraw Poll is no “make or break” proposition for him or any other G.O.P.presidential candidate.Others, including republican candidate John McCain and democrat VicePresident Al Gore, have called the Straw Poll in which ballots cost25-dollars a “sham.” Quayle is not among the critics.Former Tennessee Governor Lamar Alexander says the Straw Poll gives Iowansa chance to hear from all the contestants in the presidential race.Alexander admits he will be out-spent on Saturday.Most of the presidential candidates have been addressing the near-depressionin agriculture. Quayle says consolidation in the meatpacking industryshould be more thoroughly examined by federal officials.Before Quayle served as George Bush’s Vice President, he was a U-S Senatorfrom Indiana.