Clinton, Mayors mull drugs

WASHINGTON (AP) Armed with news that methamphetamine use is declining in
some big cities, President Clinton invited 80 of the nation's mayors to the
White House to look for ways to sharpen the attack on drugs.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors already was meeting in Washington to adopt
recommendations to take to the president today. One of the mayors' chief
priorities was a greater role for the president's drug control adviser in
reducing drug activity and use in urban settings.

Among the proposals offered Tuesday were:

Persuading youth to avoid drug use.

Providing adequate treatment resources.

Strengthening law enforcement measures.

Paying greater attention to methamphetamine use and production.

``No single program will do it,'' said White House Drug Policy Director Barry
McCaffrey, who joined more than 100 mayors, police chiefs and prosecutors in
a panel discussion.

For its part, the White House was presenting a study that showed
methamphetamine use was down in eight cities, according to an administration
official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The official did not name the
cities, but said they primarily were located in the West and Southwest.

Methamphetamine, also known as meth, crank or speed, is the fastest growing
drug problem in Western and Southwestern states. The drug affects the central
nervous system and puts users at risk of stroke and psychosis.

Officials worried Tuesday that the presence of such a potent drug would
heighten the already serious problems with trafficking and drug violence that
now afflict cities.

``I see the drug trade becoming institutionalized in the family. It is
supporting the family because young adults often can't match (at work) what
they can earn on the streets,'' said Rev. John P. Smyth of the Maryville
Academy of Des Plaines, Ill.

Patrick H. Hays, mayor of North Little Rock, Ark., decried a ``more cavalier
attitude towards drug consumption'' among Americans in recent years.

``The drug issue has slipped from the nation's consciousness,'' Hays said.
``I hope we can rekindle it.''

Nancy Graham, mayor of West Palm Beach, Fla., said a drug task force in her
city revealed drugs were far more available in schools than she had believed
and that children had few options for recreational activities.

``We kept hearing there wasn't anything to do or anyplace to go,'' Graham
said.

Baltimore Mayor Kurt Schmoke, who supports legalizing drugs, said the current
war on drugs was destined to fail unless officials removed the profits from
drug dealing and treated addiction as a medical problem, not simply a crime
problem.

``It is a domestic Vietnam,'' Schmoke said. ``I'm not suggesting we retreat
or end the war on drugs. I am saying that if we do more of the same, we will
see the same results we have over the past 80 years.''

McCaffrey disagreed, saying profits from street drug sales were not as great
as reported and noting that drug abuse overall had fallen over the past nine
years.

``It ought to remain against the law,'' McCaffrey said.