By John F. Harris
                  Washington Post Staff Writer

                  Vice President Gore says his position on the Elian Gonzalez case has been
                  the same ever since the controversy over the Cuban boy broke four
                  months ago. For a man whose position has never changed, however, the
                  vice president lately has been having a hard time making that position
                  understood.

                  Just days ago, Gore drew wide notice--and considerable criticism--for
                  breaking with President Clinton and endorsing special legislation to extend
                  resident status to Elian and his relatives in Cuba. The idea, aides said, was
                  that this would shift the legal jurisdiction over the case to Florida family
                  court, which could then decide what is in the boy's best interest.

                  But in a television interview yesterday morning, Gore stirred up more
                  confusion about his wishes in the case. Asked on NBC's "Today" show
                  what should happen if the boy's father, assuming he comes to the United
                  States, says he wants to return with Elian to Cuba, Gore responded: "If the
                  father says on free soil that he believes the son should go back to Cuba
                  with him, that, of course, is likely to be determinative and will be
                  determinative."

                  There was no mention of the need for special legislation, and no mention
                  that the father, Juan Miguel Gonzalez, should have to first make his case in
                  a Florida domestic relations court.

                  Had Gore changed his position? A few hours later, his Nashville campaign
                  office released a statement from the candidate, apparently designed to
                  assure people that Gore's stance had not changed: "From the beginning, I
                  have said that, at heart, this is a custody matter that should be handled in a
                  domestic relations court with expertise in these matters."

                  This means legislation would still be necessary. The Immigration and
                  Naturalization Service has ruled that Elian's father should take custody of
                  the boy, and his Miami relatives have appealed to federal courts. But Gore
                  aides say the INS and the federal courts are making decisions based on
                  immigration law and diplomatic precedent rather than on what is in the best
                  interest of the child.

                  For a long time, the vice president tried to keep his position on Elian
                  ambiguous. Pressed as far back as January about whether he supported
                  returning the boy to Cuba, Gore sought to avoid making an open break
                  with the administration. But he said in a Jan. 17 debate in Iowa that if the
                  father "is not allowed to come here and speak freely, then the matter
                  should be addressed in our domestic relations courts."

                  Gore aides and other administration officials said the vice
                  president--consulting with a small group that included campaign chairman
                  Tony Coelho and chief of staff Charles Burson--decided it was important
                  to make his disagreement with the administration explicit. Some sources
                  said he feared that a "precipitous" decision by federal authorities to forcibly
                  take Elian away from the Miami relatives with whom he is living would
                  cause a political backlash in Florida.

                  Gore political consultant Robert Shrum is also a consultant to Miami
                  Mayor Joe Carollo. But Shrum said he knew of no consultations between
                  the Gore team and the mayor, and that he was not serving as an
                  intermediary.

                  Gore's position has evolved over the months. In January, he said Elian's
                  father could bring about the return of his son to Cuba merely by stating "on
                  free soil" that he wished to do so. As Gore and various aides describe it
                  now, the father should not only come to the United States but convince a
                  family court that it is in Elian's best interest that he live with him, either in
                  Cuba or in the United States.

                  The campaign of Texas Gov. George W. Bush (R), who also supports
                  resolving the case in family court, said Gore's statements have been a
                  muddle. "When it comes to the future of Elian Gonzalez, it's becoming
                  increasingly hard to understand what Al Gore believes in or what he thinks
                  should be done," said spokesman Ari Fleischer. "At a time when Elian and
                  his family deserve clarity, the vice president has made the situation more
                  confusing."