BUSH DECLARES DRUG ABUSE A MORAL ISSUE ON IOWA VISIT

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Texas Gov. George W. Bush cast drug abuse as a moral
issue Friday and said he would pursue both vigorous law enforcement and more
community-based treatment and prevention.

During a campaign trip to Iowa, the Republican presidential contender said
the Clinton administration has not made the drug war a national priority.
"Drug policy has been pursued without urgency, without energy and without
success," he said.

While acknowledging it has "leveled off" the past few years, he blamed the
Clinton administration for increases in teen drug use between 1992 and 1997.
"This was one of the worst public policy failures of the 1990s," he said.

Bush spoke to about 200 people gathered at the Jane Boyd Community Center,
including 41-year-old John Harris, a Missouri man who is undergoing
treatment for drug abuse at a Colfax, Iowa-based program called Teen
Challenge. Calling the workers there "soldiers in the army of compassion,"
Bush said he would make such nonprofit programs eligible for federal funds
without "unnecessary bureaucratic oversight."

During a 20-minute speech punctuated with statistics, Bush said he would
provide an additional $1 billion for drug treatment, $350 million over five
years to community anti-drug coalitions across the country and $25 million
to support nonprofits that train parents in drug prevention. Bush also said
he would step up enforcement at the country's borders and launch a federal
methamphetamine initiative, among other proposals.

"There is no substitute for presidential leadership. More than any other
person, in America, the president can set a tone, deliver a message, lead a
cause," he said. "This is a cause I will lead."

Later, in an interview with a half-dozen Iowa reporters, Bush talked about
his personal decision to quit drinking in 1986, because it "began to crowd
out my affections." Bush said he did not think he was an alcoholic, but "I
was drinking too much. That's why I quit.

"I think it's important for people to understand that with the right focus
and right discipline and the desire, how people can change their lives. And
I, fortunately, had my life changed for the positive," he said.

Asked whether he would draw on his personal experience to educate others
about substance abuse, Bush said, "I don't think I would spend a lot of time
talking about myself. I would talk about goals and about how to lead people
to achieve goals."

Referring to a visit to Teen Challenge before the Iowa Caucuses, he said, "I
was able to relate to many of the people there because their lives were
changed by a change of heart," he said. "That's not a government function.
Governments can't change people's hearts."

Democrats contended Friday that Bush's Texas record suggests drug treatment
is not a priority for him. Texas Democratic Party Chair Molly Beth Malcolm
said the Texas Commission on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse is facing a $28
million budget shortfall that has forced funding cuts to more than 200 drug
treatment and prevention programs and the layoff of 39 employees.

Bush brusquely dismissed her allegations. "She can say anything she wants. I
would just remind her that the Republican Party of Texas now holds every
statewide office in the state," he said.

Pressed on whether her allegation about the funding cuts was true, Bush
said, "I don't know. They throw numbers. I don't have any idea what she's
talking about."