BUSH TO FILL TOP DRUG POSTS

WASHINGTON - President Bush is expected this week to nominate Rep. Asa
Hutchinson, R-Ark., to head the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Government sources who asked not to be identified said Bush was also
expected to tap John Walters, a law-and-order conservative, to serve as his
"drug czar" in charge of the White House Office of National Drug Control
Policy.

Hutchinson was one of the "managers" who made the case for seeking to
remove former President Bill Clinton from office in 1998, leading to the
House of Representatives' approving two articles of impeachment against the
Democrat. Clinton was acquitted by the Senate in February 1999.

The DEA has prime responsibility for fighting the illegal drug trade in the
United States.

Hutchinson was city attorney in his hometown of Bentonville, Ark., a U.S.
attorney in Fort Smith and a private lawyer before he was elected to the
House in 1996.

Walters, whose choice is also subject to Senate approval, was a top aide to
William Bennett, drug czar under former President George Bush. If
confirmed, he is likely to be the president's point man on federal
anti-narcotic programs, as well as on cooperation with other nations on
anti-drug efforts.