Bush Proposes $1.1 Billion More to Fight Drugs

Acknowledging limited success to date, President Bush proposed a $1.1-billion escalation of America’s war against drugs today through military might, more federal agents and the death penalty for drug lords.

The plan also sets aside $151 million to hire more FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration agents, recommends more prosecutors and judges, and recommends the designation of Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Houston and the Southwest border as “high-intensity drug-trafficking areas” eligible to divvy up a meager $50 million.

“It’s clear we’re only really getting started,” Bush said in announcing the updated national strategy, crafted by federal anti-drug chief William J. Bennett, to spend a total of $10.6 billion for fiscal 1991.

While claiming that “we’ve made some notable progress” since the original initiative was set in motion in September, the President contended that illegal drugs “remain this nation’s No. 1 concern.”

“We’re willing to spend more to limit the drug supply. Simply put, we’re willing to do whatever it takes,” Bush pledged to a group of newspaper publishers at a White House luncheon. “But the real issue, of course, is not ‘how much’; it has got to be ‘how well.’

“I want to emphasize our determination to win this fight,” he added, “without adding to the budget deficit--and yes, I repeat, without raising taxes.”

Bennett, in an introduction to the 142-page document, also cited “a string of recent successes” against the cocaine trade--the result, experts say, of increased trafficking--as well as increased international cooperation and improved public awareness.

On balance, the proposals and priorities for 1991 differed little from those for 1990. As to the budget, Bennett cautioned that “if we measure the success of drug policy by its price tag alone, we are bound to be disappointed.

“After fighting drugs for many years with limited success, we should be candid about what doesn’t work and pursue more promising solutions,” he said.

The Bush-Bennett plan, included in the budget going to Congress next week, faces an uncertain future in this election year as lawmakers weigh its details and financing.

In releasing the initiative, Bush was beaten to the punch by Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), who revealed details of his own plan Wednesday for a crackdown on hard-core, rather than casual, users, and also emphasizing economic aid instead of a beefed-up military role to help wean farmers in the Andean nations from the cocaine crop.

Biden said his proposal was not intended as “wholesale rejection” of the Administration program despite some “fundamental strategic differences” and some “tactical disputes.”

Although Bush has emphasized the need to attack both the supply and demand sides of the drug crisis, the budget for 1991 will continue to direct federal dollars more toward law enforcement and interdiction than use reduction.

The Administration proposal, as expected, called for $10.6 billion in drug-related funding for fiscal year 1991--a $1.1-billion, or 12%, increase over fiscal 1990.

The more ambitious Biden plan would cost $14.6 billion.