WASHINGTON INSIGHT

DEMOCRATS ON THE RUN: As if the Democrats didn’t already face enough trouble forestalling big Republican gains in the Senate this year, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) may have a serious reelection challenge for the first time in decades. A recent poll of Massachusetts voters by the Boston Globe found that a majority of respondents say they believe that someone else should be given a chance to serve. Kennedy, who is seeking a seventh term, is expected to be opposed by W. Mitt Romney, an articulate venture capitalist and the son of former Michigan Gov. George Romney who has the backing of the Massachusetts GOP and is likely to be well-financed. . . . Although Kennedy’s supporters maintain that the 32-year incumbent has reversed his plunge in voter esteem resulting from the 1991 rape trial of his nephew, William Kennedy Smith, the Senate titan has shown surprising signs of vulnerability in other polls as well. At a minimum, the challenge will force the liberal lawmaker to expend considerable time and resources campaigning at a time when he is a key player in President Clinton’s health care reform effort. . . . Said one national Democratic strategist: “He is taking this (election) very seriously.” . . . The Democrats, who have a 56-44 Senate majority, are bracing for an overall loss of several seats in November’s elections.

*

WATKINS REDUX: With his notorious helicopter-borne golf outing, former White House aide David Watkins destroyed on one balmy afternoon the personal ties to the President that he had been profitably cultivating for years. Or did he? . . . Washington lobbyists and some White House aides say they believe that Watkins would be a prime catch for the lobbying trade--and some say they wouldn’t be surprised to hear that he had landed a six-figure job. Although the flap over the trip sorely strained Watkins’ relationship with some Administration heavyweights, he still has close ties to some in the Arkansas crowd. During the President’s 1992 campaign and since, Watkins proved he could get things done, aides say. And ethics rules, while making the White House off limits, wouldn’t keep him from lobbying Congress or federal agencies on most kinds of business. . . . Watkins said lobbying is not one of the opportunities he is exploring. But he conceded that he’s “not ruling anything out.” . . . One big problem remains: Such a career move would renew complaints about the flexible ethics of a White House crowd that had once pledged to end such practices.

*

WITH FRIENDS LIKE THIS: Guess who is racing to Clinton’s defense in the Whitewater flap? Political extremist Lyndon LaRouche. A slick 64-page magazine put out by LaRouche followers suggests the attack on Clinton is a plot by British intelligence, angered by U.S. opposition to the International Monetary Fund’s policy of “shock therapy” for Russia. “It is your presidency they are assaulting,” the journal declared with alarm.

*

NO MORE MR. NICE GUY? A month after he was passed over for a seat on the Supreme Court, Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt has begun to develop cracks in his much-heralded even temper. Babbitt is known for his consensus-building style, but when Sen. Hank Brown (R-Colo.) last week started slamming the compromise Babbitt had carefully crafted on grazing fees for federal lands, Babbitt got steamed. He packed his bags and headed to Colorado to stare down Brown on his own turf. Brown had been a key player in the grazing compromise, and Babbitt was apparently furious that he had started bad-mouthing the plan. . . . Babbitt’s fit of pique came after the laid-back Arizonan unleashed a string of public epithets against the mining industry, which is fighting a sweeping land-use reform plan passed by the House.