POLS LOSING THEIR PRIVACY

BOSTON - Next year, Americans might be asked to overlook a presidential
candidate's days as a party animal.

Texas Gov. George W. Bush, the leading Republican in most polls, admits to
a "boozing" past, but he does not share details of his early adult life.
When asked specifically about reports in Newsweek magazine about marijuana
and cocaine use, Bush said the question was irrelevant and that he has
grown up.

MARIJUANA, ADULTERY

In 1992, candidate Bill Clinton admitted he smoked marijuana in college,
but softened that fact by adding that he did not inhale. And although he
was vague on the details, Clinton also admitted during that campaign that
he once committed adultery. Still, he was elected.

"This time around, it will be cocaine," said privacy expert Amitai Etzioni,
who believes Clinton changed the privacy of presidents forever.

Bush, who yesterday unveiled his presidential exploratory committee to test
his chances as a presidential candidate, has said he does not like public
confessions. His family has said the governor quit drinking on his 40th
birthday after years of heavy partying. Questions about those parties could
dog him on the campaign trail.

Etzioni, the author of "The Limits of Privacy," said the private lives of
public people will be less private, thanks to Clinton. But embarrassing
aspects of a politician's private life might not end his or her career,
Etzioni said.

"We have become much more tolerant," he said. "We've changed our mind on
divorce and adultery. We should look at each issue as it comes up and
evaluate it as part of the whole picture."

SALACIOUS DISCLOSURES

After a year of salacious disclosures about Clinton's relationship with
White House intern Monica S. Lewinsky, Americans might be more accepting of
a politician's personal failings, Etzioni said.

Divorce ended New York Gov. Nelson A. Rockefeller's dreams of being
president in the 1960s and an affair sidetracked Colorado Sen. Gary Hart in
the '80s. Etzioni is not sure there are any absolute poison pills for a
politician as the millennium approaches.

Etzioni will speak today on privacy issues at the Kennedy School of
Government at Harvard University. He will talk about privacy as it relates
to HIV, sex offenders, terrorists and medical records. Etzioni maintains
that privacy is not an overruling right, but just one aspect of life that
must be balanced against the common good. He believes there are times when
the common good outweighs any individual's privacy.

During the question-and-answer period, Clinton is sure to come up.

"Clinton's privacy was invaded, but that was not necessarily a bad thing,"
Etzioni said. "In fact, it was a good thing until Ken Starr and the
religious conservatives got a hold of it.

FIRST LINE

"It really does take a village. Gossip is our first line of defense in
protecting the common good. Of course, if the gossiper is wrong, like some
of the stuff you find on the Internet, then you discredit the gossiper and
move on. But I'm sure that interns at the White House will be much safer
and even the spouse in the White House may do better."

Because of Clinton and his sex and mendacity scandal, future candidates
will be more likely to disclose embarrassing aspects of their private lives
and then move on to other issues, Etzioni said.

The finesse Clinton applied to his admission of smoking pot might not have
been needed, Etzioni said. Americans already knew that many people of
Clinton's generation experimented with marijuana, so they could have
accepted Clinton's admission without the caveat, according to Etzioni.

If Bush decides to run for president, he can count on questions about his
past that some people will consider an invasion of his privacy. How he
handles those questions and how the public responds could determine whether
he is elected.