‘92 DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION : Waters Keeps Walking a Fine Line With Clinton : Democrats: She stands side-by-side with Jesse Jackson at a rally and takes the podium to second the candidate’s nomination.

NEW YORK —  Sunday evening at Harlem’s Apollo Theater, Rep. Maxine Waters stood side-by-side with the Rev. Jesse Jackson at a rally for him. Wednesday night, the freshman congresswoman from Los Angeles climbed the podium at the Democratic National Convention to second the presidential nomination of Bill Clinton.

Those appearances vividly underscored the difficult role Waters has played in the Clinton campaign. She lent key support to the Arkansas governor even as she sought to maintain ties to Jackson--her longtime political ally who feuded with Clinton throughout much of the primary season.

Waters has been walking this fine line since emerging as one of the first major black politicians to endorse Clinton--support that came as a critical dispute brewed between him and Jackson.

For Waters, backing Clinton was a politically calculated move designed to maximize her potential influence and access in a Democratic White House.

For the Clinton camp, she has served as a bridge to black voters and a vehicle for keeping Jackson at bay.

“Let me tell you where the power really lies,” Waters said Wednesday. “When a Maxine Waters endorses a Bill Clinton, the power to be at the White House to convince him, to work with him, is awesome power.”

Waters’ support for Clinton, however, has created a dilemma for her at times.

After the riots in Los Angeles, the 53-year-old lawmaker condemned the economic and social conditions that helped fuel the unrest--not the looters. Clinton, on the other hand, severely repudiated the rioters.

Another predicament arose last month, when Clinton and Jackson clashed over rap singer Sister Souljah. Waters remained publicly silent after Clinton chose an appearance before Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition to charge that comments by the rap singer were examples of black racism.

Privately, she told sources, she believes both men erred in their handling of the conflict that resulted from that episode.

Waters used her seconding speech late Wednesday at Madison Square Garden to declare that she is backing Clinton without sacrificing her principles.

“I am not known as one who vacillates or hesitates,” she said. “I know what I’m doing and I know why I’m doing it. Four years ago, I seconded the nomination of Jesse Louis Jackson. Tonight I rise to second the nomination of Bill Clinton for President of the United States of America.”

The timing of Waters’ public endorsement of Clinton earlier this year was designed to quell rumblings from Jackson. It came in early March, days after a blowup between the two men. Clinton had harshly criticized Jackson in response to an erroneous report that the black leader had endorsed one-time candidate Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa. Jackson, in turn, expressed anger at Clinton’s response to the mistaken report.

Sources in the Jackson camp said that he was stunned by Waters’ decision to choose that moment to officially embrace Clinton.

“I understood . . . that you have to start early,” Waters said Wednesday when asked about the political risks of her endorsement. “And I was hoping that we would unify and come together early behind someone. . . . I knew looking at (the Democratic primary candidates) that Bill Clinton was the one.”

Clinton aides said that Waters was given the coveted opportunity to deliver a seconding speech for the nominee in part because she symbolizes the inner-city tragedy of Los Angeles.

More important, a senior Clinton aide said, Waters’ presence Wednesday night on the podium and her role in the campaign is crucial because she represents strong, new leadership in the black community that supports the nominee.

“You wouldn’t do this just for a political reward,” the aide said. “It’s too big for that.”

Asked whether her enthusiasm for the Clinton candidacy waned because of the ongoing dispute with Jackson, Waters said: “I can’t expect that people can always do everything that I do or say everything that I say. All that I do is try to use my influence to get people to come where I am. Bill Clinton gives me that opportunity; that’s all I can ask for.

“I talk to Bill Clinton. I hope he listens to me, I think he does.”

Later, at a luncheon sponsored by Essence Magazine in honor of Illinois Senate candidate Carol Moseley Braun, Waters attached an addendum to her support on behalf of Clinton and his running mate, Tennessee Sen. Al Gore. Future nominees, she said, have to reflect the nation’s diversity.

Declared Waters: “This is the last time I will support a ticket with two white men!”

Times staff writers Ronald Brownstein and Sam Fulwood III contributed to this story.