MCCAFFREY STILL FIGHTING DRUGS

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The images of smiling young people who died too soon are
etched in Barry McCaffrey's mind -- not memories of wars fought by the Army
general turned nation's drug policy chief, but haunting visions from
America's fight against drugs.

``I served in a rifle company in combat where essentially all of us got
wounded or were killed,'' said the 56-year-old retired four-star general,
who as director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy sits on
President Clinton's Cabinet and the National Security Council.

During the Vietnam War, he was seriously wounded but insisted on fighting
until the next morning when he eventually passed out.

That kind of persistence helps him deal with the daunting challenges of
drug abuse.

In the 1990s alone, more people have died or been ruined by drugs than all
of the Vietnam War, McCaffrey said. ``In terms of tragedy,'' he said,
``drug abuse in America is overwhelmingly worse than external national
security challenges.''

Such are the driving thoughts of McCaffrey, who is overseeing an
unprecedented five-year anti-drug ad campaign that Clinton kicked off
Thursday in Atlanta. The federal government will spend $195 million on the
project this year.

The goal is to hit the average family at least four times a week, through
TV, radio, newspapers, billboards or the Internet.

McCaffrey, who became drug chief two years ago, does not like to refer to
the nation's drug problems as a ``war on drugs.''

But in many ways -- to the joy of supporters and the angst of critics --
McCaffrey is fighting the way he did during 31 years as a soldier.

McCaffrey, who wears a bracelet engraved with the name of a young girl who
died of a drug overdose, often works 18-hour days. He often can be found
listening to community leaders, negotiating drug strategies with Congress
or traipsing through foreign fields. Federal marshals must guard him after
repeated threats by drug lords.

``You've got to go where Americans are working on this problem,'' says the
man who was awarded the Purple Heart three times and saw two tours of
Vietnam. During the Persian Gulf War, he led the now-famous ``left hook''
assault that cornered Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's elite Republican
Guards.

``He's good at marshaling forces and analyzing a mission and motivating
people to get things done,'' says Gen. Colin Powell, who made McCaffrey his
top aide while chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

But to critics, McCaffrey is simply stubborn.

In April he angered needle-exchange supporters when he lobbied President
Clinton to abandon plans to use federal funds for the program. Last
November, McCaffrey balked at Defense Secretary William Cohen's proposed
fiscal 1999 budget, saying more money was needed for drug-fighting efforts.
The two sides eventually reached a compromise.

McCaffrey's claim of real change in the drug crisis is ``purely rhetoric,''
complains Kevin Zeese, president of the group Common Sense for Drug Policy,
which supports medical marijuana and needle exchange programs.

Too many people are incarcerated instead of treated for drug problems,
Zeese said.

Added Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif. who clashed with McCaffrey over
needle-exchange programs, ``He's moving forward with basically what is his
own program. It may be he is not accustomed to working in a give-and-take
atmosphere.''

It often is his blunt style that ruffles critics.

Take a recent hearing on drugs before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Sen.
Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., declared after hearing reports of increased drug use
among young people, ``I don't think we can put a positive spin on what
we've seen. I think you as the drug czar need to be sounding the alarm.''

McCaffrey quickly retorted: ``I resent you suggesting that I'm putting a
spin on it.'' He later declared to Sessions, ``Senator, you're looking at
the wrong book.'' McCaffrey says detractors should give him time.

``My hope is ... in another couple of years we see definite signs the
curves are all coming down,'' he said. ``I think the heart and soul of what
we're going to do ... is community action. That's where America will
understand the problem and confront it.''

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski