MORE QUERIES ABOUT DRUGS PUSH BUSH TO NEW ANSWERS

His Qualified Replies Called 'Clintonesque' Queries About Drugs Keep
Pursuing Bush Qualified Answers Are Called 'Clintonesque'

Gov. George W. Bush of Texas, answering questions he assiduously -- and
angrily -- avoided for years, Thursday proclaimed himself drug-free for more
than the past two decades.

But rather than resolve rumors about his admittedly hard-partying past,
Bush's circumscribed statements renewed speculation about his personal
conduct -- and a debate over the bounds of legitimate media inquiry. Bush's
qualified comments also drew comparisons to President Clinton and his habit
of dribbling out denials.

Speaking to reporters in Roanoke, Va., during a stop at a youth center, Bush
said Thursday that he could have cleared a 15-year background check during
his father's years in the White House, including questions about past drug
use. The period would extend back to 1974, when Bush was in his late 20s.

"Not only could I pass the background check and the standards applied to
today's White House," Bush told reporters, "but I could have passed the
background check and the standards applied on the most stringent conditions
when my dad was president of the United States."

The senior Bush served as president from 1989 to 1993.

Just a day earlier, in an interview with the Dallas Morning News, Bush had
declared himself drug-free for at least the past seven years.

His explicit, if calibrated, denial of drug use over a specific time marked
a turnabout for the GOP presidential front-runner, who as recently as last
weekend insisted he would not "play the Washington, D.C., game of gossip" by
answering such inquiries.

The 53-year-old Bush has often admitted to a venturesome past, including
heavy drinking until he swore off alcohol on his 40th birthday. He has
declared himself faithful to his wife, Laura, throughout their 21 years of
marriage. But up until this week, Bush had repeatedly and sometimes heatedly
refused to answer questions regarding rumors of cocaine use.

Background check

That changed when the Dallas Morning News asked whether, as president, Bush
would insist that his appointees answer drug-use questions contained in the
FBI's standard background check.

"As I understand it, the current form asks the question, did somebody use
drugs within the last seven years, and I will be glad to answer that
questions, and the answer is no," Bush said.

Thursday, Bush went further, essentially denying any drug use over the past
25 years. Beyond that, however, he refused to say.

"I believe it is important to put a stake in the ground and say enough is
enough when it comes to trying to dig up people's backgrounds in politics,"
Bush told reporters at a follow-up news conference in Columbus, Ohio.

"I'm going to tell people I made mistakes and that I have learned from my
mistakes," Bush said. "And if they like it, I hope they give me a chance.
And if they don't like it, they can go find somebody else to vote for."

Recent opinion polls show that the public believes that questions about drug
use by presidential candidates are legitimate, though they do not regard the
answers as highly relevant in determining a candidate's fitness for office.

In a Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll released last week, 69 percent of the
registered voters surveyed said they wanted answers to the question of
whether a candidate had used cocaine in the past. But 72 percent said
experimentation with cocaine as a youth should be forgiven.

Frank Newport of the Gallup Organization said a poll from last February
found that while 53 percent of those questioned wanted to know about past
drug use among politicians, they were more interested in learning about such
things as whether a politician cheated on his taxes, failed to pay his
debts, was an alcoholic or had been accused of sexual harassment.

Instead of quashing rumors about his past, however, Bush's statements
Thursday drew intense new focus to the unsubstantiated allegations of drug
use -- and criticism from supporters and opponents alike, who compared his
carefully crafted responses to Clinton's famous evasions.

For years Clinton ducked questions about drug use by saying he had "never
violated the laws of my country." Only when an interviewer asked during the
1992 presidential primaries about international laws did Clinton admit to
trying marijuana while studying abroad.

"It's Clintonesque," one frustrated Bush supporter said of the governor's
evolving approach to discussing his past indiscretions. "He wants to be the
anti-Clinton, but he's looking more like Clinton."

A Bush aide dismissed the comparison. "Far from it," said Scott McClellan.
"Governor Bush has said he has learned from his mistakes and he's honest
about it."

Anti-drug laws

As Texas governor, Bush endorsed several anti-drug measures, including laws
that toughened penalties for people convicted of possessing or selling less
than a gram of cocaine.

Publicly, the governor's opponents sought to distance themselves from the
budding controversy.

"I'm not going to comment on George Bush's life," Elizabeth Dole said after
being peppered with questions as she left a fundraising lunch in Irvine.
"That's his personal life."

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., was a bit more equivocal. "If it was my
preference, I would allow the governor privacy on this issue," McCain told
reporters after delivering a speech on technology issues in San Francisco.
"But I also understand that the media and the American people are the ones
that make that decision."

By coincidence, a survey released Thursday showed support for Bush slipping
somewhat in New Hampshire, the first primary state. The poll by American
Research Group, an independent firm, suggested that Bush received little
benefit from his victory in last weekend's Iowa straw poll: Bush had 40
percent support in New Hampshire, down 7 percent from last month, compared
with 16 percent for McCain. The rest of the nine-candidate field registered
only in single digits.

The Washington Post contributed to this report.