JOHNSON HOPES TO BEND BUSH'S EAR AT GOVERNOR ROUNDUP

SANTA FE -- Gov.Gary Johnson was recruited along with the nation's other
Republican governors to help usher their colleague, former Texas Gov.
George W. Bush, from the statehouse and into the White House.

Today those governors, including Johnson, will be at the Bush family ranch
in Crawford, Texas.

They have the president-elect's ear, mostly on education reform, but also
on other issues facing the states that those governors represent.

Johnson said he is looking forward to a discussion on school choice. Bush,
like Johnson, favors private school vouchers for families who have students
stuck in failing public schools. Both men as governors tried unsuccessfully
to get their respective legislatures to pass voucher plans.

But the two part ways when it comes to the scope of a voucher program.

During the presidential campaign, Bush laid out a plan for $1,500 vouchers
that would go only to families of students whose schools fail to meet
standards for three years.

Johnson wants a wide-open plan in New Mexico that would eventually provide
vouchers for any family who wants out of public schools. And Johnson claims
his vouchers would pay a larger chunk of private school tuitions.

But Johnson's efforts have failed in New Mexico, and the Legislature does
not appear any warmer this year to the governor's idea for school reform.

Johnson is expected to lobby Bush today for a more aggressive federal
voucher plan from the White House.

Johnson said Friday that he may also make a pitch to the president-elect
for new thinking about drug policies in the nation.

During the presidential campaign, Johnson said he was hesitant to push too
hard on drug legalization during conversations with Bush. Johnson said he
understood why Bush wouldn't want to touch the issue because of the
political consequences of appearing soft on drugs.

Bush said publicly during the campaign that he opposed Johnson's ideas
about legalizing some drugs.

Rather, Bush said he supported efforts to cut the demand for drugs and to
enforce the border against drug smuggling.

Johnson goes much further in his quest to change drug policies. After
receiving a report this week from his Governor's Drug Policy Advisory
Group, Johnson jumped on the recommendation that New Mexico's laws should
be changed so that possession of small amounts of marijuana would no longer
be against the law.

"The line that needs to be drawn, I think, is if you're doing drugs, you're
smoking marijuana in the confines of your own home, doing no harm to
anybody arguably other than yourself, do you belong in jail for that?"
Johnson asked during a news conference Friday. "Should that be criminal? I
don't think that that should be criminal."

Johnson said he thinks nationally some leaders are beginning to warm to new
strategies that would replace the so-called war on drugs.

Because of his new optimism, Johnson said he may try again to talk with
Bush about his drug reform ideas.

"I might. I might," Johnson said Friday. "Again depending on the situation."

The other thing Johnson said he will bring up with Bush is a recent federal
decision to deny New Mexico's managed-care program the ability to keep
offering mental health services.

Johnson said today's meeting is a key perk to having a Republican in the
White House.

"I do see it as a great opportunity, and I'm certainly going to take
advantage of it," Johnson said.