Gen. Powell Considered to Head State Dept.

Gen. Colin L. Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a close adviser to Presidents Reagan and Bush, is under increasingly serious consideration for secretary of state in the Bill Clinton Administration, according to transition officials.

If chosen, the 55-year-old son of Jamaican immigrants would be the first black in American history to occupy what historically has been considered the preeminent Cabinet post. And Powell’s selection, in the words of one transition adviser, would be “the political coup of the century” for a young President who was severely criticized during the campaign for his successful efforts to avoid military service during the Vietnam War.

In a related development, a senior transition official said Wednesday that President-elect Clinton is likely to name his choice for attorney general “by the end of the week,” and may announce one or two other domestic Cabinet positions at the same time. Patricia M. Wald, an assistant attorney general in the Jimmy Carter Administration and now a judge on the federal appeals court here, appears to be the leading candidate for the Justice Department job.

Wald, if appointed, would be the first female attorney general in U.S. history.

Today Clinton is expected to name at least two members of his top economic team: Sen. Lloyd Bentsen (D-Tex.) as secretary of the Treasury and Rep. Leon E. Panetta (D-Carmel Valley) as director of the Office of Management and Budget. Bentsen is understood to have arrived in Little Rock, Ark., Wednesday night in preparation for the announcement.

Some transition sources said that Los Angeles attorney Warren Christopher, who was deputy secretary of state in the Carter Administration and now heads Clinton’s transition, remains a possible choice to head the State Department. Christopher, 68, also could be named White House chief of staff.

Powell, who served as Reagan’s national security adviser and has been Bush’s closest counselor on military affairs, was on earlier laundry lists of possible candidates for a Clinton Cabinet post but he is now considered one of a small number of serious prospects to head the State Department. As a military officer, he is barred by law from serving as secretary of defense, which might seem a more natural fit.

The four-star general’s rise stems in part from the unusually strong impression he made on Clinton with his straight-forward manner and grasp of issues during their first one-on-one meeting in Washington last month. “He and Clinton really hit if off when they met,” a Clinton aide said.

Bill Bradley (D-N.J.), who shares Clinton’s belief that economic considerations should have greater weight in foreign policy, is also a possibility. And Sam Nunn (D-Ga.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is rated a contender for either state or defense.

Nunn said in an interview Wednesday that he has not been approached about a position in the new Administration. He said that he “would be glad to talk with President-elect Clinton about any job, although I haven’t in any way decided I’m interested in leaving the Senate.” Political and other considerations weigh against Bradley.

Powell, who as chairman of the Joint Chiefs oversaw Operation Desert Storm, which drove Iraqi forces out of Kuwait nearly two years ago, is highly regarded by Democrats and Republicans alike.

A registered independent, he voted for President Lyndon B. Johnson over Republican nominee Barry Goldwater in 1964, according to Howard Means, a Washingtonian magazine writer and author of the newly published “Colin Powell: Soldier/Statesman.”

Means and others who have closely followed Powell’s career said that, because of deeply felt obligations to his race and his sense of history, the general would be hard-pressed to turn down the opportunity to become the first black to serve as secretary of state.

A close Powell associate, former Reagan arms control negotiator Kenneth Adelman said: “Gen. Powell would be a fabulous choice. . . . It would send a great signal to anyone who thinks Clinton may be soft on defense.”

Powell, in an interview Wednesday, turned aside questions about possible service in the Clinton Cabinet, saying: “I don’t talk about things like that. And I’m not lobbying for anything. I won’t contribute to speculation. A lot of agents and people talk who may or may not be representing someone.”

Although Powell said that he is “happy being chairman of the Joint Chiefs” and is looking forward to retiring next fall, a senior transition aide said: “Powell is definitely interested.”

The chief drawback to such an appointment, he noted, would be that all of the factors making Powell a strong choice also could make him a potential source of difficulty if he and Clinton were to clash during the next few years. “He would be very difficult to fire,” the aide said.

Although Clinton has sought strong, independent figures for his Cabinet, he has also tried to ensure that they are people with personal loyalty to him.

Powell does have one other bit of potentially troublesome baggage: as then-Defense Secretary Casper W. Weinberger’s military assistant before he became national security adviser to Reagan, he arranged the transfer of TOW missiles from Army stocks to the Israelis in what became the notorious arms-for-hostage deal with the Iranians.

The precedent for making Powell secretary of state is an illustrious one. The last army officer to be placed in that job was George C. Marshall, chief of staff during World War II and, under President Harry S. Truman probably the most universally admired secretary of state of the century.

When Clinton comes to final decisions, political considerations may play a significant role.

Since he apparently already has given Republicans an opportunity to win another Senate seat by selecting Bentsen to be his Treasury secretary, Clinton may decide against selecting Nunn or Bradley, thus creating additional chances for the GOP to win seats. The GOP recently captured the other Senate seat in Georgia in a run-off election.

On the attorney general appointment, Christopher--asked at a press conference Wednesday if Clinton had definitely decided to name a woman--said “that decision has not been made.”

But another senior transition official suggested that while Clinton may not have made a firm decision to name a woman as attorney general, he nevertheless is strongly headed in that direction.

Given the choice of Bentsen for Treasury secretary and the likelihood that the departments of State and Defense would both be headed by men, naming a female attorney general would be the only way to have a woman in the ranks of the Cabinet’s most senior posts, the official noted.

Times staff writers Melissa Healy and David Lauter contributed to this story.

ECONOMIC POST AT ISSUE: Environmentalists move to block appointment. A27