GOV. BUSH 'VERY INTERESTED' IN WHITE HOUSE RUN

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Texas Gov. George W. Bush said in an interview
aired Tuesday that there was nothing in his background to disqualify
from running for president, but dodged a question about whether he had
ever used drugs.

Bush has not announced whether he will seek the 2000 Republican
presidential nomination, although he said in an interview with CNN:
``I'm very interested.''

Polls indicate that the eldest son of former president George Bush is
the early front runner in the race for the Republican nomination among
politicians who have said they are running or are considering running.

During the CNN interview, Bush acknowledged that he had quit drinking
because ``alcohol began to compete with my energies.''

Asked whether he had ever used drugs, Bush said, ``I'm not going to
talk about what I did as a child. It is irrelevant what I did 20 to 30
years ago. What is relevant is that I have learned from any mistakes I
made. I do not want to send signals to anybody that what Governor Bush
did 30 years ago is cool to try.''

The elder Bush, who served in the White House from 1989-93, told
French daily Le Figaro in an interview published Wednesday that his
son would probably run for president, but it would be understandable
if he declined over worries about how his candidacy would affect his
family.

The former president said journalists already were trying to dig up
damaging revelations from his son's past.

``So my son could tell himself, 'I run the second-biggest state in the
country and I do a good job. Why inflict the pain of a run for the
White House on my family?' and I would understand that he give it
up,'' Bush said.

``But he is honest and strong. I think there is a good chance he will
run,'' he added.

The younger Bush, who has job approval ratings of 87 percent in Texas,
has admitted to youthful indiscretions, saying he used to drink
alcohol heavily.

``He's 53, so he's had time to pull himself together. There was a time
when he drank a lot, but for the past 11 years, he hasn't touched a
drop,'' the former president was quoted as saying. ``He was never an
alcoholic, it's just he knows he can't hold his liquor,'' Bush said.

Asked in the CNN interview about any problems with alcohol, the Texas
governor said, ``Probably no more so than others that you know.'' But
he noted that he had quit drinking ``because I was drinking too much
... Alcohol began to compete with my energies.''

Noting President Clinton's impeachment trial in Washington and the
departure from politics of others who had admitted marital infidelity,
CNN asked Bush if there was a ``lapse in judgement'' in his past.

``No,'' Bush answered. ``I have said many times that there's nothing
in my background that would disqualify me from being governor of
Texas, much less president.''

Bush noted his strong appeal to Hispanic voters and said that could
help him if he decided to mount a campaign for the presidency.

``I think I understand how to talk about the future so that people
feel the future belongs to them,'' he said, adding, ''I've got a
pretty good handle on Hispanic culture.''