SOME REPUBLICANS URGE BUSH TO TELL MORE ON DRUGS

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - George W. Bush sought to ride out the first storm of
his front-running drive for the White House Friday as fellow Republicans
offered him conflicting advice on whether he needs to say definitively if
he ever used illegal drugs.

"He needs to come clean," said Oregon Republican Chairman Perry Atkinson.
"The longer he delays a direct answer the longer this will haunt him."

Connecticut Republican Chairman Chris DePino disagreed, saying, "He has
already said enough" in admitting he made mistakes but declaring he has not
used illicit narcotics since at least 1974, the year he turned 28.

Bush, 53, the governor of Texas and son of former President George W. Bush,
stuck to his story Friday as he campaigned in Akron, Ohio, and waited to
see if his strategy will succeed or fail.

"I made some mistakes," Bush said, repeating what has become his new daily
mantra. But if elected president, he vowed, "I will bring dignity and honor
to the office."

Bush has refused to deny using illegal drugs, saying personal missteps he
may have made long ago are not pertinent to his White House quest.

But in the past two days, he suddenly altered his stance by saying he had
not used illegal drugs for at least 25 years.

The abrupt shift came after he was asked if he could meet current standards
for those seeking federal jobs, which require no illegal drug use in the
last seven years.

Bush answered that question affirmatively in an interview published on
Wednesday in The Dallas Morning News. On Thursday, he said his drug-free
days extend back to at least 1974.

A number of Republicans, some privately and others publicly, have said Bush
has suffered self-inflicted wounds from the resulting controversy.

"He should have said he met the federal requirement (drug free for the last
seven years) and then left it at that," said one party official. "He has
opened himself up."

Sen. Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican who entered the White House campaign
last month, saying he wanted to be available if Bush stumbled, said Bush
stumbled on this one.

"I think the Bush campaign has mishandled this question," Hatch told CNN.
He said Bush should say whether he used drugs and move on.

On Thursday, the Bush campaign sent "talking points" about the flare up to
supporters. "The message basically was this is all rumor," an aide said Friday.

Bush has accused the camps of presidential rivals of spreading the rumor,
an accusation that other campaigns deny.

Bush is the only presidential candidate who has refused to answer whether
he has ever used illegal drugs. He says his answer that he has not used
illegal drugs for at least 25 years should suffice.

Matt Smith, a spokesman for Republican candidate Gary Bauer, disagreed,
saying, "The American people and the press, not the candidates, determine
the statue of limitations on issues of character or committing a felony."

Sen. John McCain of Arizona, while campaigning for the Republican
presidential nomination in San Francisco Thursday, said, "the governor is
entitled to privacy" but "it is the media and the American people who
decide what questions should be asked and what questions should be answered."

Former Vice President Dan Quayle said Friday he accepted Bush's answer to
the drug question and suggested that his Republican presidential rival be
given a break.

"I know a little something about media frenzies," Quayle said in a
statement. "I think this one should stop."

Cliff May, communications director for the Republican National Committee,
said, "There is not a shred of evidence that he has done anything wrong."

May charged that Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota
triggered the "media frenzy" by telling reporters on Aug. 14 that the drug
question is "a legitimate question."

"Journalist should track down rumors and see if they are true or not, not
just repeat them and ask people to deny them," May said.

Louisiana Republican Chairman Mike Francis said Friday he would not offer
any advice to Bush on the drug question, other than, "Voters will decide if
he needs to say more."

REUTERS