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Senate Rejects Plan to Stop Rating
Countries' AntiDrug Cooperation

By Thomas W. Lippman
Washington Post Staff Writer

The Senate last night rejected an administrationsupported plan to
scrap one of the most controversial tools in the nation's drugfighting
arsenal, the annual certification of other countries as cooperative or
not, and to seek instead an entirely new approach to combating drug
traffic and use.

The 60 to 38 vote demonstrated widespread congressional
dissatisfaction with the annual process of passing judgment on other
countries' drugfighting efforts. But sponsors of the measure,
who appeared at one point to have enough votes to pass it, said a
majority of senators were persuaded to vote against it out of fear of
being portrayed as soft on drugs at reelection time.

Many lawmakers have come to believe that in 11 years the annual
State Department review of other nations' antinarcotics efforts has
aggrieved friendly countries while doing little to keep drugs from
entering this country. But a vote to scrap that program would have
been a farreaching change in national policy on a major issue
adopted with little public input because there were no hearings on
the measure.

Under an amendment to the fiscal 1998 foreign aid spending bill
sponsored by Sens. Christopher J. Dodd (DConn.) and John McCain
(RAriz.), the certification process would have been suspended for
two years. During that time, the president "should appoint a
highlevel task force of foreign policy experts, law enforcement
officials and drug specialists to develop a comprehensive program"
for combating drugs.

Opponents of the plan, however, said it would abandon a useful
source of leverage on such nations as Colombia and put nothing but
hopes and promises in its place.

"It would gut the certification process and replace it with absolutely
nothing," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (DCalif.).

"What is left to leverage cooperation? More talk?" asked Sen. John
F. Kerry (DMass.). He said the amendment relied on the hope that
"some future photo opportunity" would produce an effective
international drug fighting plan.

Many senators said they agreed with Dodd and McCain that the
certification process has been tested for 11 years and found wanting.
That sentiment has been growing in Congress since last winter,
when President Clinton certified that Mexico has been fully
cooperative in U.S. antidrug efforts.

White House national security adviser Samuel R. "Sandy" Berger
endorsed the DoddMcCain plan in a letter to its sponsors yesterday,
as did retired Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, director of the office of
national drug control policy.

Under legislation adopted during the presidency of Ronald Reagan,
the president is required to list for Congress each year which
countries are fully cooperating in U.S. efforts to fight drugs. Those
that are "decertified," such as Colombia, Nigeria, Afghanistan and
Burma, are cut off from U.S. aid and subject to various other
sanctions.

With some countries, and especially with Mexico, the certification
process has become an issue in itself. Clinton stirred strong criticism
in Congress earlier this year when he certified Mexico as
cooperative, even though Mexico is the conduit for most of the
cocaine flowing into the United States and its law enforcement
system is riddled with drugfueled corruption.

Clinton, who was about to visit Mexico, accepted the State
Department's judgment that Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo is
committed to the antidrug campaign, even if Mexico's police
officers and judges are not.

© Copyright 1997 The Washington Post Company