HOUSTON--The way Bill Spadea figures it, he's fighting a war.

"We're not at all comparable with the enemy," says the director of the National Youth Coalition. "If we don't think of it as a war, we're going to lose."

Spadea's army this week is composed of hundreds of high school and college-aged Americans from across the country. They travel in tightly-packed clusters around the Astrodome area, clamoring to get prime spots on the floor and scrambling to the front of the welcoming rally crowds. They are decked in suits and ties or fancy dresses--often they wear red or white plastic cowboy hats. And they come with a passion for the platform and for the cause.

That passion is so strong that many young Republicans consider themselves farther to the right than their standard bearer. "The president is not as conservative as we would like," says Spadea, 23.

Spadea says that of the 110,000 national members of the National Youth Coalition, the vast majority--82.3 percent--is pro-life. And their conviction on the abortion issue is one indicator of their strong belief in family values, a rallying cry for many of them.

During both sessions of today's convention, young Republicans flooded the floor, shouting pre-re-hearsed slogans--"Four More Years!"

"Clean the House!" and waving signs, someprinted, some brightly painted. One homemade signdeclared "Dan knows values."

Family values, for the young Republicans, meanstaunch support of the platform, which affirms theban on gays in the military.

"You don't get any homosexuals in ourmovement," Spadea says. "You don't get any peoplewho are sympathetic to the homosexual cause. Wereally don't want them, but they don't want anypart of us."

Many College Republicans confirmed Spadea'sassessment of the organization's shift of theright.

"There's a large movement in our CollegeRepublicans towards Buchanan," notes University ofPennsylvania sophomore Steven Bloom.

Bloom, who is pro-life, says his fellow collegeRepublicans want to "try to get Bush to move tothe right a little."

And Daniel Chappel, a North Carolinan who willenter Duke University next year, says that to sayhe is pro-life is "putting it lightly."

"I love Bush, don't get me wrong," Chappellsays. "But I am much more conservative than him."

Undergraduate Council Chair David A. Aronberg'93 is here as a field producer for Kid Companyradio, a WBZ program. Recent graduate Rachel Burg'92 is news director for the program. Both areDemocrats, and both were surprised at theconservatism of the college students theyencountered.

"I thought I was a conservative at Harvard, ora moderate at Harvard," says Aronberg, a Tsongassupporter. "I'm a bleeding heart when it comes toHouston."

And Burg recalls that students here asked hernot if she was liberal, but if she was "aliberal."

"I felt like I was going to be found out," shesays. "I really felt like I had something tohide."

By late Monday evening, the conventionatmosphere had become a little bit like the linein front of a Boston nightclub. The crowd wasimpatient. A few would-be ralliers started tomoo, and the barnyard mimicry started to spreadthrough the hundreds of young Republicans waitingto get on the floor.

When actor Robert Downey Jr. arrived with acamera crew--some guessed it was form MTV--moststudents forgot about their aching feet and beganto clamor for autographs. But a few minutes later,they quickly abandoned their new-found hero. Itwas time for them to enter the convention den andgreet another, older hero--Ronald W. Reagan.

"We love the Gipper," the posters screamed."Thank you, Ron,"

Reagan remains he master of image. His speechhearkened back to his days as president, paintinga picture of America as a world leader, a "shiningcity on a hill."

But many Republicans say that in thisimage-oriented campaign, college students aren'tthe suckers the spin-doctors make them out to be.

"I don't think that because Gore and Clintonare younger, [young people are] swayed," said Sen.Robert J. Dole (R-Kan.) Dole said mediaappearances like Bill Clinton's "Arsenio Hall"saxophone stint won't affect young voters as muchas the Democrats might think.

Spadea agrees.

"Young people today are truly disgusted at whatthe Democrats have done by taking young studentsand making them into little kids that can bebought," Spadea says.

The college students at this convention showtheir disdain for the media by sporting buttonsthat label the CBS anchor as "Rather Biased." Theycarry signs that declare. "STOP the Liberal/MediaLynch Mob! Tell the Truth About the ReaganLegacy."

And as Reagan prepared to speak, theycompletely filled the space in front of the podiumand led the entire convention in cheers. They weredifficult to quiet down when the former presidentwanted to begin.

When Reagan concluded his speech with a note toall Americans "and especially the young peoplehere," students went wild