CLINTON ANNOUNCES ANTI-DRUG EFFORT

WASHINGTON, (UPI) - Flanked by his top law enforcement
lieutenants, President Clinton announced more federal resources to
help states and localities test, treat and sanction drug offenders in
the nation's prison system.

Shortly after the Justice Department issued a report today showing
that in 1997 more than three-quarters of the nation's prisoners
reported past drug use, Clinton appeared with Attorney General Janet
Reno, drug czar Barry McCaffrey, members of Congress and state and
local officials to declare that while crime overall is down, ``We
have to break this cycle'' of drug abuse.

Clinton is proposing $215 million in his fiscal year 2000 budget,
which will be sent to Capitol Hill Feb. 1, to enforce a ``zero
tolerance'' policy of testing those in prison, on probation or parole.

``Today we want to make a dramatic leap forward,'' the president said.
``To inmates in every state, we want to send a message: If you stay on
drugs, you must stay behind bars. To probationers and parolees, we
want to send a message: If you want to keep your freedom, you have to
keep free of drugs.''

The event took place as word was announced on Capitol Hill that
Clinton's impeachment trial in the Senate would begin on Thursday.
Scant other details were revealed, however.

Clinton appeared distracted during the ceremony in the Roosevelt Room,
in which he was widely lauded for his leadership in the fight against
crime and drugs by Reno, McCaffrey, Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., Sen.
Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., Maryland Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and
a Republican mayor from Reno, Nev.

``Mr. President, with your leadership, our efforts to fight crime and
to make our communities safer has paid off with solid results,'' Reno
said. ``America is a better place today, a safer place than it was
when you came to Washington.''