BUSH SEEKS CUT IN DRUG USE

Aides Say Plan Stresses Treatment Rather Than Enforcement

President Bush yesterday called for cutting the domestic use of illegal
drugs by a quarter over the next five years in what aides described as an
effort to reorient federal drug policy toward treatment rather than
enforcement.

Bush set as targets a 10 percent reduction in drug use over two years and a
25 percent reduction over five years. He urged a 6 percent increase in
federal funding for drug treatment for next year -- to $3.8 billion -- part
of a 2 percent increase in the overall anti-drug budget, to $19 billion.
Funding for interdiction efforts would increase 10 percent, to $2.3 billion.

Advocates of an overhaul of U.S. drug-control policy called the proposal
insufficient, arguing that the administration plan represents little change
in emphasis. But key lawmakers welcomed Bush's high-profile call for
focusing on decreasing the demand for drugs.

"Ours is a concerted effort to reduce demand," the president said in the
East Room of the White House. "As demand goes down, so will supply. As we
reduce demand in America, it'll take the pressure off of our friends in the
south."

White House officials said Bush's remarks demonstrated that his policy
disproves perceptions that Bush cares only about drug interdiction and
enforcement, perceptions that were bolstered by Bush's choice as head of
the White House drug policy office, John P. Walters, who is aggressive on
enforcement. "Everyone expected [Bush would] be all counternarcotics and
enforcement," a Bush aide said. "This has been on his mind a lot. The root
of the problem is demand."

As he has done with other domestic policies in recent weeks, Bush placed
his anti-drug initiative in the context of the anti-terrorism campaign. The
message, that terrorists profit from the drug trade, echoed the theme of
two ads aired during the Super Bowl by the Office of National Drug Control
Policy. The ads were part of the office's $180 million-a-year media campaign.

"Drugs help supply the deadly work of terrorists," Bush said. "Make no
mistake about it: If you're buying illegal drugs in America, it is likely
that money is going to end up in the hands of terrorist organizations."

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), who with Sen.
Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) passed legislation in the Senate that would more
dramatically increase drug treatment efforts, said he welcomes Bush's
words. "I hope he will work with Congress so that we can actually do it,"
he said. House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner Jr.
(R-Wis.) called Bush's proposal "ambitious, thoughtful and comprehensive,"
and he promised "whatever support is needed in this pressing effort."

But Rep. John Conyers Jr. (Mich.), the ranking Democrat on the House
Judiciary Committee, said that despite "the shiny new wrapping paper, this
is the same old failed and racially biased drug policy. . . . While the
president claims that we need to aggressively promote treatment, he
actually proposes to spend seven times more money on drug interdiction than
treatment."

Conyers's view was shared by liberal drug policy groups. Eric E. Sterling,
president of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation, said Bush's strategy
is "very unlikely . . . to produce any different result than we've seen so
far. We ought to be saying, 'How do we save more lives?' "

Administration officials said Bush's proposal is a practical way to help
the 3.9 million drug users in the United States who do not receive help.
They noted that efforts would be made to help young users in the 12 to 17
age group. For next year, for example, Bush has requested $644 million for
the Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program, they said.

U.S. Customs Service Commissioner Robert C. Bonner, attending Bush's
speech, said he was "heartened" by the emphasis on treatment over enforcement.

Stephen J. Pasierb, president of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America,
who also attended the speech, applauded Bush for "bringing this issue back
to the center of the national agenda. . . . The president has set clear goals."

Asa Hutchinson, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, said in a
telephone interview from California: "Clearly, his budget reflects what
he's talked about -- the importance of combining strong enforcement with
treatment programs and education."