DEA DIRECTOR SPEAKS ON DRUG WAR

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) -Tighter security at airports and borders since the
Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks has helped lower drug trafficking, said
the director of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Asa Hutchinson, the nation's top drug-enforcement officer, told a Syracuse
University audience Thursday that sixteen thousand pounds of cocaine were
seized at the country's borders in the last six months.

When asked by audience members about legalizing drugs, Hutchinson said
complete legalization was "irrational and illogical" and would not stop
organized crime. "We need to invest in more treatment options," he said.

Some in the audience said the war on drugs was a waste of time and
resources. Hutchinson said the government's policy was on the right track,
and less than 5 percent of Americans use illegal drugs -down by one-third
over the last 20 years.

"We need to invest in what works," he said, supporting courts for drug
offenders and pushing for prison programs helping drug abusers. "And we
need treatment in prisons, not just incarceration."

Hutchinson said he sees a "clear and long-standing link between terrorism
and drugs," noting as examples two Palestinian terrorist groups linked by
authorities to the illegal drug trade.

Facing allegations that his agency disproportionately targeted minorities,
Hutchinson said, "We target traffickers of drugs. ... We should always look
at racial fairness."