DRUG CZAR VACANCY EXPOSES POLICY DIVIDE IN GOP

Conservatives Worry That Bush May Lack Zeal In Narcotics Battle

After a month in office, President Bush has not named anyone to be the
nation's drug czar, and the vacancy is exposing divisions among GOP
leaders over how the drug war should be fought and who should lead it.

Since taking office, the president has said little on drug issues. In a
January interview, he questioned long minimum sentences for first-time
drug users.

When a top administration official was asked recently about the delay in
appointing a drug czar, the response was curt: "On the drug czar, we'll
get back to you. The president is paying full attention to it. I am sure
that he will have an answer for you soon."

Some Republicans, conservative groups and issue activists worry that the
president may attach less visibility to the drug-fighting efforts, from
interdiction to criminal penalties and treatment.

"It's time to use the bully pulpit again and re-engage the public debate
on these issues," said William Bennett, who in 1989 became the country's
first Cabinet-level drug czar.

Bennett sounded an alarm about drug policy last week in an opinion
column in The Washington Post that challenged critics of mandatory
criminal penalties on users.

In a CNN interview last month, Bush seemed to side with some GOP
governors by questioning long jail sentences, favoring more resources
for drug treatment and seeking to end the disparity in sentencing for
crack and powder cocaine.

Minimum Sentences

"A lot of people are coming to the realization that long minimum
sentences for first-time users may not be the best way to occupy jail
space or heal people from their disease," Bush said. "And I'm willing to
look at that."

In his opinion piece last Sunday, Bennett warned that efforts to roll
back criminal penalties would remove an important element that can deter
drug use and coerce some users into treatment.

Bennett is not the only person concerned about what direction drug
policy may take.

Robert Maginnis, a vice president of the Family Research Council, noted
that Bush met with the president of Mexico and will meet with the
president of Colombia without a drug czar to coordinate administration
policy.

"I've heard a lot about tax cuts [from the administration] but not drug
policy," said Maginnis. "I'm concerned because every day that's lost
will have an impact on a few more kids."

Maginnis admits he has a personal interest in the issue. A retired Army
colonel and Pentagon inspector general, he's in the running for the job.
According to Republicans on Capitol Hill, so are Bill McCollum, the
former Central Florida congressman who lost a Senate race in November,
and James McDonough, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush's drug policy coordinator.

Anti-Drug Groups

The drug czar vacancy has also mobilized several anti-drug groups. Judy
Kramer of Illinois, who recently founded a grassroots group called
Educating Voices, successfully lobbied Speaker Dennis Hastert to support
Maginnis for the job.

A staffer for Hastert confirmed that the speaker endorsed Maginnis and
put in a good word for him with Clay Johnson, Bush's deputy chief of
staff.

Kramer said the drug problem requires urgent attention: "There are foot
soldiers out were just waiting for our marching orders."

It's no surprise that drug policy would be the subject of debate in the
Bush administration. Bush's Cabinet includes people with decidedly
different approaches to the drug problem.

Attorney General John Ashcroft, after his Senate confirmation to fill
the top Justice Department post, said "reinvigorating the drug war" was
one of his top priorities. He strongly supports lengthy mandatory
sentences for users.

Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, as Wisconsin
governor, backed some needle-exchange programs to prevent the spread of
disease among addicts -- a move strongly opposed by Ashcroft.

'Demand Problem'

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has said the drug problem is
"overwhelmingly a demand problem" and questioned the need for more
military involvement in cutting off supply.

Outside the administration, Republicans are also split. Some GOP
governors such as George Pataki of New York favor reducing mandatory
sentences for users.

Conservative guru William Buckley has been critical of U.S. involvement
in Colombia and praised governors who emphasize "treatment instead of
incarceration."

Some Florida Republicans who want to see more emphasis on stopping drugs
from entering the country have joined the debate.

"I'm hopeful we will see more done on interdiction," said Rep. Lincoln
Diaz-Balart, a Miami Republican. "We have to attack supply and demand."

McDonough, who watched Washington turf wars as drug czar Barry
McCaffrey's chief of strategy, said that "what's happening now is a
power vacuum, with people rushing in to fill it."

Some congressional Republicans also worry that the job may be
de-emphasized, given the strong personalities of other top
administration officials. That happened after Bennett left the job and
was succeeded by Bob Martinez, the former Florida governor who did not
have a high profile.

McCollum and McDonough, in separate interviews, would not discuss their
own prospects for the job, but had similar thoughts about the post
itself.

Clout Needed

"It would be a mistake to take it below Cabinet level -- it's important
to have that clout," said McCollum, who chaired the House crime
subcommittee since 1995.

McDonough said: "You need that clout if you're going to get the
attention of the secretary of Defense or State."

Bennett said Bush's father had made it clear to other administration
officials that Bennett was in charge of drug policy.

"President Bush [in 1989] took me to a Cabinet meeting, put his arm
around me and said, 'This is an important job -- when this guy calls
you, I want you to return his calls,' " recalled Bennett.

Bennett suggested that differing views will make the new drug czar's job
difficult.

Said Bennett: "These are strong men and the new drug czar had better be
someone who is not a pansy, who can hold his own."