Nixon predicts Reagan will beat Kennedy in '84

Former President Richard Nixon predicts that Ronald Reagan will win a second term by defeating Sen. Edward M. Kennedy in 1984.

But Mr. Nixon said it was imperative that Mr. Reagan soon declare his intention of running again in '84, or he would risk being perceived as a lame duck.

In the interview, taped last Friday at the Nixon home in Saddle River, N.J., Mr. Nixon said Mr. Reagan would be a strong candidate because he would be able to point to tax cuts, reductions in government spending, and a decrease in unemployment, all of which he had pledged to accomplish during the 1980 campaign.