BYLINE: TOM GJELTEN, WASHINGTON, DC; ROBERT SIEGEL, WASHINGTON
by Tom Gjelten, Washington, DC; Robert Siegel, Washington
Content and programming copyright (c) 1997 National Public Radio, Inc.
All rights reserved. Transcribed by Federal Document Clearing House, Inc.
under license from National Public Radio, Inc. Formatting copyright (c)
1997 Federal Document Clearing House, Inc. All rights reserved.
NPRSHOW: ALL THINGS CONSIDERED (NPR 8:00 pm ET) MARCH 3, 1997 News;
International

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: President Clinton is under
bipartisan attack for his decision to declare Mexico fully
cooperative in the war on drugs. Senate Minority
Leader Tom Daschle, a Democrat, said today that both
Democrats and Republicans are so angered by reports of
corruption in Mexico that it will be an uphill fight to
keep Congress from overturning the president's finding.
Meanwhile, governments in Latin America say that the idea
of grading countries on their counternarcotics programs
only serves to undermine cooperative efforts. NPR's Tom
Gjelten reports that the controversy has some drug experts
wondering whether the certification process is worth the
trouble it causes. TOM GJELTEN, NPR REPORTER: The Mexican
general responsible for his government's counternarcotics
program is charged with being on a drug lord's payroll.
Mexico police officials pick up the man who reputedly
manages drug smuggling profits in the country, then let him
go. And that's just in the past two weeks. Under the
circumstances, members of Congress from both parties are
outraged that the Clinton Administration would certify
Mexico as cooperating in the drug war. Prominent
Democrats, such as Dianne Feinstein in the Senate and
Richard Gephardt in the House, have already said the
Congress should overrule the president's report. So has
Republican Jesse Helms, chairman of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee. Mark Tisan (ph) is his spokesman.
MARK TISAN, SPOKESMAN FOR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE JESSE HELMS
(RNC): When you have Dick Gephardt and Dianne Feinstein
and Jesse Helms on the same side of an issue, that that
signifies that there's a real good chance that we could
overturn this decision. GJELTEN: In his weekly radio
address on Saturday, President Clinton acknowledged that
corruption is a major problem in Mexico, but insisted that
the Mexican government is determined to root it out. But
there are other explanations for why the Administration
gives failing grades to some countries Columbia for
example and approves others such as Mexico. MATHEA
FALCO (ph), FORMER DIRECTOR, COUNTERNARCOTICS PROGRAM,
UNITED STATES STATE DEPARTMENT: The certification process
really is a political process. It doesn't have to do with
the drug problem.