White House Bound?

Smoking pot. Illicit sexual liaisons. Dodging the draft.

Not exactly the issues one would like to see deciding the winner of the 1992 presidential nomination. but so far, candidate Bill Clinton's alleged extra-marital romance with Jennifer Flowers has received far more press attention than his social security policies.

And while the country has watched President Bush, Bill Clinton an Jerry Brown come under unprecedented media scrutiny for past actions, Harvard's student politicians have watched nervously.

Many undergraduate politicians entertain notions of someday running for office. Some have already targeted which elective office to run for and when to launch their campaigns. For these students, the 1992 presidential election shows just how pervasive "the new rules" of politics have become.

American government officials are increasingly being held to standards of conduct to which most nuns could not adhere, students say.

Clinton's case is particularly disturbing to students politicos. Like them, the Arkansas governor has been plotting a political career since his college days.

Students watched with more than a little trepidation a decisions Clinton made in college--to try marijuana, to obtain a draft deferment, even his decision to pursue a political career--have been used against the governor in his campaign for the Democratic nomination.

While some student politicians say they will not let their lives be determined by "the new rules," others say they have learned a lesson from this year's election campaign: be careful about everything, from classes to clubs, finances, friends and even casual acquaintances.

Almost no student politico will admit to dreaming of White House splendor since their diaper days, but some began thinking about political careers early in life.

"I've always liked politics a lot," says Undergraduate Council Chair David A. Aronberg '93, who envisions a run for a seat in the legislature in Florida, his home state.

"When I was growing up, I looked up to politicians more than sports heroes. It was only recently that I started to look up to sports heroes more," Aronberg says.

For those with political dreams Harvard is a critical checkpoint, In this century, the College has been alma mater to several senators, numerous congressional representatives and two U.S. presidents.

"I've witnessed a lot of people from my constitutional law class, and through my interests at Harvard, who are already running for office," says Kenneth D. DeGiorgio '93, co-president of the Association Against Learning in the Absence of Religion and Morality national (AALARM).

DeGiorgio says tat running for elective office is not thigh on his agenda.

"I'm much more interested in judicial politics," he says. But for those who look to elective office as a long term goal, the Harvard experience can be valuable stepping stone.

"Where an organization like the [Institute of Politics] does help is in getting jobs and summer internships," says Republican Club President Emil G. Michael '94. "I will be working for the Supreme Court of the Heritage Foundation."

But even as the build contacts that may later work to their advantage, student politicians worry about acting in ways that may later jeopardize their chances of being elected.

"If you look at the politicians, the things that really hurt them can start this early," says Gregory P. Chernack '93, president of students for Clinton. "When you get to a national level, your life will be completely dissected."

Just what offices these students politicians will seek is up in the air. Many talk about the governorships of their home state. Some see themselves as legislators. Others want to work behind the scenes before deciding.

"I guess I might be interested in something political in 25 years--if I've achieved something somewhere else," says Adam D. Taxin '93, former co-chair of the Undergraduate Council's academics committee. "President for life might be good Or maybe benign dictator or philosopherking."

"I certainly do not see myself entering politics out of my undergraduate or graduate work," says Maya G. Prabhu '94, co-chair of the council academics committee.

"I really have a problem with career politicians."

For students seeking government office, the proper educational background is vital. Many student politicians concentrate in government, though they are quick to reject the sterotype of the overbearing, briefcase-toting "gov jock."

didn't want to be a typical student politician--the gov jock who plans out every year how he's going to become president of the United States," says Aronberg, a government concentrator who will be eligible for his first run for the presidency in 2008.

Some students say they take pride in breaking the "gov jock' mold.

"I pride myself on being an economics concentrator," says Taxin. "I've taken only one gov course at Harvard, and I didn't do very well in it."

But he cautions, "Gov concentrators dominate the [Undergraduate Council]."

And not every student believes Harvard should be a training ground for those with political ambitions.

"College activism is about idealism," says Harry James Wilson '93, who says he plans to enter academia before trying his hand at elective politics. "It's not a question of trying to pad your resume."

Aside from on student politician, who admits to "over-footnoting" to avoid even the appearance of academic dishonesty, students say they worry mostly about how their social lives will play politically.

Going to party and saying something, you have to be careful in that sort of situation," says Sucharita Mulpuru '95, a Crimson editor and a newly elected member of the student advisory committee at the Institute of Politics.

"I think maybe now after Clarence Thomas and Bill Clinton, people will be more careful what they say and do in social situations," Mulpuru says.

Some students say they watch not only what they say but also where they say it.

They are taking heed of the flack which has trailed President Bush, who has been sharply criticized for joining Yale's then all-male Skull and Bones club during his undergraduate days.

At the time, membership in the club was considered a political asset, not a liability. But Bush's opponents have lambasted his youthful club ties as a symbol of his attachment to elitist, uppercrust society.

"I've been a lot more sensitive with regard to joining organizations that might be considered offensive in the future," says Aronberg.

And he adds, "I've been adverse to joining a final club--[the new rules are] part of my decision not to join."

But not all students say their political prospects influence which groups they join.

"A lot of people wouldn't want people to know they're in a final club or a frat," says Taxin, a fraternity member.

I might have joined a final club if I had gotten into any."

Student politicians are almost universally silent on question of illicit romances and finances. Many say they have not much time to accumulate much of either.

"I haven't had the opportunity to meet any Donna Rices yet," says Aronberg.

But while they like to keep their private lives private, student politicians don't seem to mind criticizing each other.

"A lot of the amateur politicians on this campus try to appease people," says Taxin. "I don't want to be a politician... I've lost several elections in the [Undergraduate Council]--I'm a terrible ass-kisser."

"There's a conscious decision to keep up appearances on the part of some [student politicians]," Taxin adds.

And AALARM President DeGiorgio says some students avoid taking controversial stand publicly, even when they have strong private opinions.

"A student in my constitutional law class who I knew to be avidly pro-life changed his position in this class because he didn't want anyone to know," DeGiorgio says.

When confronted with issues that could be potentially damaging, many student politicians have learned to equivocate. "I probably joined the Currier House football pool this year," says Aronberg.

"The fifteenth week of the pool I won the whole thing," adds Aronberg. "On the typed sheet it said. 'you may want to save this."

But while some student politicians strictly conform to the new rules, others rail against the system.

"I think politicians should just say, 'damn it. "I've done some bad stuff"' says Taxin. I think Bill Clinton should have said, 'sure, I smoked something myself, and if everyone who smoked pot voted for me, I will win by a landslide bigger than Reagan in '84."

Other student politicians say the new rules have largely turned them off from politics.

"As a profession , the work that it entails does not interest me much," says Allan H. Erbsen '94 former head of Students for Tsongas and a member of the Civil Liberties Union of Harvard.

"Right now I can't see myself sitting down and running for office. And, well, as my roommate adds, wining," Erbsen jokes.

But not every student politician fear the new rules will someday affect their political careers. Some say the hype may just be a trend--like the hula hoop--and that in the future no one will care about their college days.

"I think people have to forgive because what people do when they're 20 doesn't mean they'll do the same things when they're 50 or 55," Taxin says.

"I drink a lot and I've been with my share of women, but I'm not into drugs and I pay my taxes," he adds, then pauses.

"Well, I probably won't go into politics anyway."