Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, January 16, 1994                   TAG: 9401160016
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: JOHN KING ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

GORE GETS INFLUENCE RARE FOR JOB

But a year into Bill Clinton's presidency, Gore says he likes the role of understudy just fine, and he gets high marks from his boss, the public and even the opposition.

With Clinton's blessing, Gore has raised the profile of his office significantly, serving not only as a cheerleader for Clinton's proposals but also as the architect of several.

His most visible moments during the first year came in the vice president's usually ceremonial role as president of the Senate. Twice Gore cast votes to rescue Clinton's tax and deficit-reduction package.

But his influence goes well beyond decisive votes in the Senate.

He has a prominent voice in environmental policy. Clinton's Environmental Protection administrator and White House environmental adviser are former Gore deputies.

"The thing which has been most gratifying to me is the sea change in environmental policy," Gore says.

Also, Clinton put Gore in charge of drafting the administration's "reinventing government" proposal to cut the federal bureaucracy by more than 250,000 jobs and rewrite government purchasing rules. Gore also is shaping a large share of technology and telecommunications policies.

And, Gore has assumed an unusually high profile in national security and foreign policy, enough to prompt occasional grumblings at the State Department.

In one year, he has visited 30 states, proving a solid draw for Democratic Party fund-raisers, and appeared a dozen times on Sunday network television shows.

But his television highlight was appearing on David Letterman's show, where he smashed an ashtray with a hammer - Gore's way of criticizing federal purchasing rules that dictate how many pieces should result from the shattering.

Gore visited a half-dozen countries and met with a host of foreign leaders, including Boris Yeltsin after the parliament elections. He attends most major White House meetings, and at times has become the butt of jokes for standing stiffly at Clinton's side during major announcements.

Gore's crowded portfolio is unusual for a vice president.

"It's clear that people are forming more expressed opinions about Al Gore than they have about previous vice presidents," said pollster Andy Kohut of the Times Mirror Center for the People & Press. "He's visible, and he is well-regarded. He is viewed as a strong second in a way that a vice president generally is not."