1992, Anyone?

By PAUL GRAY/

When Democratic Party chairman Ron Brown meets the press these days, the conversation invariably veers toward potential candidates for 1992. Brown refuses to offer names but tolerates a free-association game with reporters. Is Mario Cuomo considering running? "I would think so," Brown replies. Ditto for Bill Bradley, Al Gore and Dick Gephardt. But mention of Jesse Jackson ! elicits a more emphatic response. "My view is that Jesse will not run," says the chairman, who presumably knows Jackson's mind as well as anyone. In the next breath, he concedes that Jesse has a habit of zigging when Brown thought he would zag.

With reporting by David E. Thigpen