Balance of power

For 16 months during the early years of the Clinton administration, Wilson School professor Frank Von Hippel worked with the White House, advising the president on arms control and nuclear disarmament.

But he doubts he will be invited back in the near future.

And Von Hippel is not alone among those Princeton professors who consider themselves liberals. With the White House set to host its first Republican administration in eight years, some policy-minded professors who have worked with the government in the past are coming to grips with their newfound status as intellectual outsiders in the Bush bureaucracy. And a few conservative academics, such as politics professor Robert George — who advised George W. Bush's father on civil rights during the last Republican administration — are preparing to see their influence in Washington increase with the arrival of more sympathetic ears.

Nor are the implications of the upcoming transfer of power lost on those Wilson School graduate students who are currently contemplating whether to pursue jobs in Washington following graduation.

For his part, Von Hippel has recently found himself wondering whether his informal role in Washington will be diminished, if not eliminated altogether. "They will be less interested in hearing from me than the current crew," he said.

One specific problem for Von Hippel is the missile defense system that Bush has committed to supporting. With the new administration "gung-ho" about the proposal, making progress on matters related to disarmament is going to become increasingly difficult, he predicted.

Von Hippel said he would also like to see the passage of the Comprehensive Test Ban treaty — an agreement that would have banned the testing of nuclear explosives, but failed during the Clinton administration. And Von Hippel said it was unlikely that Bush would push Congress to pass such a treaty.

Nevertheless, Von Hippel believes the Senate may now be more open to liberal views, with the Democrats having gained several seats to achieve a 50-50 split with the Republicans. Those Senators who are listening to him, he said, may be able to accomplish more than before.

With Washington less receptive to his views, Von Hippel said he will be spending more time taking his opinions to the public. As chair of the Federation of American Scientists, a non-governmental arms control agency, Von Hippel said he will be "going to the public and trying to re-educate the administration through them."

Not all liberals feel their influence on public policy in Washington is fading quite so quickly, however. Wilson School professor Stanley Katz believes the Republican takeover in Washington will not affect his work immediately. "In my particular part of the world, change is much slower," he said. Among the groups Katz advises are the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institute.

Still, Katz thinks his influence will eventually shrink. "Those views aren't likely to be welcomed," he said.

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Yet he said he is not ready to give up advising the government in those areas completely. "I really care about these things," he said. Katz added that like most others in his situation, he will be writing articles and trying to contribute to the public debate.

"That's the alternative," he said.

But some liberal professors feel their roles in the government will remain unchanged.

"The government routinely reaches out to many Americans for advice," said Jeffrey Herbst, who often advises on U.S. policy in Africa.

Economics and public affairs professor Alan Krueger — who, in addition to contributing articles to The New York Times, informally advises Washington officials on economic policy — also said his role would not change much during the next few years.

Conservative professors, who sometimes seem few and far between at the University, are standing in the opposite position. George, for example, said he has had limited influence in Washington during the past eight years.

"Certainly not in the administration, but in Congress," he said, describing the work he has been doing.

But now he may be able to take a position similar to the one he held during the earlier Bush administration when he advised on civil rights. "There are people who are more sympathetic to my way of thinking," he explained.

As professors are searching to find their new roles in the Bush administration, many graduate students in the Wilson School are weighing whether to work in Washington following the transition of power.

Second-year graduate student John McCoy has already decided to move to Washington, but is not sure in what capacity he will be working.

"Capitol Hill is one possibility. Interest group work is another possibility," he explained. The possibility of working for the government became much less attractive to McCoy, however, once Gore made his concession.

"Certainly, it's made executive administration jobs a lot less palatable," he admitted.

But he said he still believes there is a place in Washington for both supporters and critics of Bush. "There's plenty of places to sort of make noise in opposition," he said. "It's just going to be a nasty four years in Washington no matter where you are."

Many of McCoy's peers share a similar perspective. This is hardly surprising given that, according to McCoy, only about three of his more than 60 classmates declare themselves Republican.

Jess Melanson GS, another self-proclaimed liberal, provides an alternate viewpoint. "There are a lot of factors determining where you would work," he said.

He admitted he was never as likely as some of his peers to work in the executive branch of government, but Bush's victory did not make him any less likely. In fact, he said, liberals may be more drawn to working in the administration. "Maybe you have more of a purpose down there," he said.

Melanson also said he would not expect the next president to have an effect on his peers' desire to work in Washington unless they were planning to work in the White House directly.

Catherine Kenney GS disagreed. She became more averse to the idea of working in Washington partly because of the people who will no longer be there. "I had friends working in the Clinton administration; going to Washington is now less fun," she explained.

The departure of her friends influenced her decision even though she does not plan on working for the government. As a doctorate rather than a master's degree student, Kenney is looking more toward academic and research positions.

Like many of his peers, Jonathan Oakman GS was influenced by the election result, but not swayed decisively by it. "I'd consider it my highest choice if it were a Gore administration," he said of working in the state department. "I wouldn't be that happy about starting in the Republican administration."

But he also emphasized that compromise may be necessary for success. "I think to a certain extent, you have to be willing to take the Democrat or Republican in the career," he added.

First-year graduate student Udai Tambar plans to go to Washington this summer to get a better feel for what has happened there. "When I heard the election results, I thought twice," he said.

Since he will be working on education and youth development, Tambar is especially sensitive to the political party in power.

"It might be better just to work for a lobbying group for a couple of years," he said, explaining that the Republicans generally support vouchers, which he opposes.

For Tambar, it's going to be a long four years — if not longer.