JACK FORD, HOPE TAFT JOIN TO FIGHT DRUG PROPOSAL

DAYTON - Toledo Mayor Jack Ford and Ohio First Lady Hope Taft blasted a
proposed constitutional amendment as harmful to Ohio's children and
communities during a news conference with local government officials, one
day before the measure is to be certified to the Nov. 5 general election
ballot.

The pair lead the campaign against state Issue 1, which would change the
state's constitution to make the state's drug laws more lenient. They are
traveling across Ohio trying to raise opposition to the measure, saying it
is overly complicated and masquerades as a first step toward legalization
of some controlled substances.

Mrs. Taft called the measure a "Trojan horse amendment" because, upon its
passage, it would wipe past drug convictions from violators' records,
treating longtime drug offenders as first-time violators.

"This is perhaps the most misleading provision in the proposed amendment,"
she said. "Imagine this idea on its own. Imagine a lawmaker proposing that
prior drug offenses be discounted, making someone who has been arrested
once for illegal drug use equal to someone who has been arrested 20 times."

Edward Orlett, chairman of the Ohio chapter of the Campaign for New Drug
Laws, which backs the proposal, said Ms. Taft and Mr. Ford are distorting
the intent of the measure.

"The only thing horsy about this amendment is the amount of manure those
two are spreading around the state. They are piling it thick and deep," he
said.

He acknowledged that longtime offenders would get a fresh start, but said
that, should the amendment pass, the state legislature would have wide
latitude in writing rules under which the measure would be enforced. During
that process, he said, lawmakers could make whatever adjustments they deem
necessary to protect the public.

Carlo LoParo, spokesman for Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell, said
yesterday the measure's backers submitted 420,000 valid signatures, easily
enough to qualify for the ballot. He said Mr. Blackwell is expected to
certify it to the ballot today.

Mr. Ford said workers against the measure will target demographic groups
that have a predisposition against liberalizing drug laws, including senior
citizens and parents of school-age children. They said they would depend on
a grass-roots campaign because they did not believe they could keep up
financially with the proposals' well-heeled backers.

His appearance here marks another phase in Mr. Ford's political career, as
he builds on a statewide political presence he developed as state House
Democratic leader in the late 1990s. That position required many trips to
all corners of Ohio to recruit candidates and raise money for House candidates.

He said his legislative experience in Columbus and as the founder of two
drug treatment agencies were behind his appointment to head the campaign
against the amendment.

"We make an effective team," Mr. Ford said of Ms. Taft. "It's a real
bipartisan effort."