Republican Harrington, Atty. General Candidate, Seen as Hurt by U.S. Atty.

The nonpartisan comments of U.S. Attorney William Weld--a Republican--on Saturday may have all but eliminated Republican Ed-ward F. Harrington as a serious challenger for the Attorney General's Office, narrowing the race to the two leading Democratic candidates, according to political experts.

Harrington's nascent campaign is expected to center on the criticizing of retiring Attorney General Francis X. Bellotti's laxness in prosecuting government corruption and organized crime.

Harrington will probably heighten these attacks on Bellotti should Middlesex County District Attorney L. Scott Harshbarger triumph in the Democratic primary. Harshbarger previously headed Bellotti's public protection division and is closely connected with Bellotti personally as well as professionally.

The potential success of this strategy diminished sharply, however after U.S. Attorney Weld's comments at a Saturday news conference, according to leading political consultant Michael Goldman. The conference was held to announce Weld's decision not to seek the Republican nomination for Attorney General.

Weld recently enjoyed a major crimefighting triumph when his organized crime strike force convicted four leaders of organized crime after an eight-month trial.

At the news conference Weld, far from joining in Harrington's attacks, praised Bellotti as a "hero" and a "man of the people" who "after 12 years brought a great deal of luster to his office by the conduct of his office," according to The Boston Globe.

According to the Globe, Bellotti refused to answer a question about whether his praise of Bellotti was a "rebuke" of Harrington's attacks on the Attorney General.

Nonetheless, Goldman sees Weld's statements as very damaging to Harrington's prospects.

"Harrington's campaign is based on saying the previous attorney general didn't do the job. When a person your own party sees as a leading corruption fighter says Bellotti is a visionary and gives him a ringing endorsement, how can you make such criticism stick?"

"Until this weekend, I thought Harrington would be much tougher," Goldman said. After Weld's remarks, Goldman said he did not view Harrington as a factor in the race.

Harrington's fading in the race, according to Goldman, makes the Democratic primary likely to decide the winner of the general election.

The other Democratic candidate to declare his candidacy is former U.S. Represenative James Shannon, who currently practices law at Hale and Dorr, but has never held a public legal office.

The difference in the primary, Goldman said, "will be in how people view the Attorney General's Office, whether the office needs a prosecutor. The D.A.'s office's major focus is violent crimes. The Attorney General's office does so much more."

Harshbarger spokesman Tom Samoluk said Harshbarger will meet any challenges about his limited experience by discussing how he has expanded the scope of the D.A.'s office into "non-traditional areas, public protection bureau, white-collar crime, consumer crime, computer and environmental crime."