Gephardt Panel to Study Presidential Campaign

WASHINGTON — Rep. Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.) moved closer Monday to seeking the 1988 Democratic presidential nomination as he established an exploratory committee to help him test the waters for a possible campaign.

“I will be traveling across the country in the next two or three months, and I hope to make up my mind at the end of that time whether I want to mount a full campaign,” Gephardt, 45, told a news conference while attending the Southern Legislators Conference on Children and Youth in Nashville, Tenn.