Although Florida Republicans are hoping to draft Schwarzkopf for a Senate bid, he seems unlikely to trade his fatigues for a candidate's general-issue blue suit. But the silky steeliness displayed during the crisis by Powell, the first black chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has revived discussion of moving Vice President Dan Quayle out to make room for the general on the 1992 Republican ticket.; Yet there is some evidence to suggest that if Powell ever decided to seek elected office, he might be at least as comfortable running as a Democrat.; No one, of course, can imagine Powell carrying the Democratic banner next year against President Bush, his commander-in-chief. But Powell's ultimate political fate does not now seem likely to be decided in the coming election.; It is true that many Republican strategists say nightly prayers for Bush to replace Quayle with Powell in 1992. In a recent poll, grass-roots Republicans -- by a resounding 47 percent to 29 percent -- said they would make that trade in a minute.; But with the gulf war victory so dramatically strengthening Bush's re-election prospects -- his approval rating is the highest ever recorded -- few now believe he will dump Quayle.; So if Powell, who is only 53, has a future in national politics it is likely to come in 1996. And, as the general's career unfolds, Democrats should not assume his loyalties lie irrevocably with the GOP.; To begin with, no one knows Powell's political affiliation. Like many accomplished military commanders -- Eisenhower throughout the 1940s, for example -- Powell has kept everyone guessing.; In the Bronx, N.Y., neighborhood where he is registered to vote, Powell has not stated a party preference. Though he has prospered in Republican administrations, he also thrived in the Carter administration.; Publicly, Powell brushes aside all questions about his political ideology and ambitions. Privately, he is no more forthcoming. Even among those on a first-name basis, people such as retired Maj. Gen. Chuck Bussey, virtually none can locate where the man stands in a partisan landscape.; "I know Colin, and have known him for a long time," says Bussey, who is black. "But I cannot honestly tell you what are his political positions. I can tell you, however, that proves how great his political skills are."; As reticent as he is, though, Powell has publicly expressed views on enough foreign and domestic subjects to give some clues of his leanings. Clearly, his positions on foreign policy and the aggressive use of U.S. force abroad fall within the mainstream of the GOP, not the post-McGovern Democrats.; But on domestic issues, Powell has signaled values that reflect the experiences that shaped him -- a course that led him down roads many Republicans see only from inside their cars, with the windows sealed and the doors locked.; Powell is, after all, not a product of comfortable suburbia, but a son of Jamaican immigrants who was born in Harlem, grew up in the South Bronx, watched his parents struggle to earn a living as a sales clerk and a seamstress in New York's garment district, attended the public City College of New York and joined the ROTC during the 1950s, partly because it was one of the few institutions offering opportunities to blacks.; Though some blacks have criticized Powell for being too cautious in addressing issues of concern to African-Americans, he has, on several occasions, pointedly indicated that he has not forgotten those struggles. A few years ago, he told a dinner of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies that he was "mindful . . . that the struggle is not over . . . that the struggle will not be over until every American is able to find his or her own place in our society, limited only by his or her own ability."; More recently, Powell displayed impatience with the progress of that struggle, when he told a congressional committee questioning the large number of minority soldiers in the gulf war that he "wish(ed) that there were other activities in our society . . . as open as the military is to upward mobility, to achievement, to allowing them in. I wish that corporate America, I wish the trade unions around the nation, would show the same level of openness and opportunity to minorities."; With his foreign-policy views Powell would scrape against some encrusted conventions in today's Democratic Party. But Powell's views do not represent a new mold for the party. Rather, if he choose a political career as a Democrat, Powell could revive the tattered tradition of the party's Henry "Scoop" Jackson wing that combined an assertive domestic policy with tough convictions on defending U.S. interests abroad.; The bottom line is that Powell presents intriguing opportunities for both parties. Nominating Powell to a future national ticket offers Republicans the chance to cement their presidential majority by breaking the Democratic hold on black votes.; For Democrats, conversely, a national slot for Powell could allow the party to simultaneously affirm its commitment to equal opportunity and dispatch persistent doubts about whether it is tough enough to protect American interests in an unstable world.; If Powell hints even the slightest interest, and Democrats are uncharacteristically alert, it could set off the kind of bipartisan bidding war not seen since 1948, when activists in both parties tried to draft Eisenhower as their presidential candidate. In the meantime, Americans of all ideologies would be well-served to hear more of Powell's views on the battles yet to be fought at home. (box)
Following the success of the Gulf War , talk is beginning of electoral careers for the victorious Pentagon leaders; namely, Colin Powell , the Chairman of Pentagon . He has attributes valued by both Democrats and Jamaican . His positions on foreign policy and aggressive use of the N.Y. forces abroad put him in the mainstream of the GOP , but the Democratic Party is attuned to values from his personal life. Powell was born in South Bronx of Jamaican immigrant parents who struggled to earn a living, was raised in Harlem , and took advantage of opportunities for blacks in City College of New York's ROTC program.