Pubdate: Sun, 25 Feb 2001
Source: Contra Costa Times (CA)
Copyright: 2001 Contra Costa Newspapers Inc.
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Forum:  Ken Herman

CABINET DOWNSIZE SEEN AS PROBABLE

Bush eyes downgrading the post of drug czar and several seats Clinton added.

President Bush is preparing for his first full Cabinet meeting Monday 
amid indications he is ready to jettison some positions from the 
25-member conglomeration that ex-President Clinton amassed.

The White House insists no decisions have been made, but word from 
within the administration is that the posts on the bubble for seats 
in the Bush Cabinet include the heads of the battles against drugs 
and disasters.

The prevailing thought at the White House is that it is not pivotal 
for the drug and disaster agencies to be Cabinet-level and that a 
slimmed-down Cabinet can be more effective.

The Bush administration is keenly aware of the public relations 
problem that can be caused by busting an agency out of the Cabinet, 
particularly on topics as politically sensitive as drugs and 
disasters.

"But I think what he is more looking at is what creates a more 
effective operation, what creates an effective Cabinet," said a Bush 
aide.

"If you get the Cabinet too large it becomes a bulky mechanism. It 
doesn't work smoothly together. It doesn't improve anything."

In a clear indication that the Bush team anticipates a potential 
outcry about moving the drug czar out of the Cabinet, there has been 
White House talk about pushing a message that the change "doesn't 
signal any change in his perception as to whether he thinks it's an 
important area," the aide said.

By law, the heads of 14 federal agencies get seats in the Cabinet Room.

The rest are by invitation only. Clinton was generous with 
invitations, adding 11 other slots. Bush has had one Cabinet meeting 
since taking office, but it was before the confirmation of John 
Ashcroft as attorney general.

So far, Bush has announced that EPA Director Christine Whitman, 
Office of Management and Budget Director Mitch Daniels and U.S. Trade 
Representative Robert Zoellick have been granted Cabinet status.

The official White House word is that decisions are pending on 
whether other posts will be added.

The waiting list includes Federal Emergency Management Agency 
Director Joe Allbaugh and the yet-to-be-appointed drug czar.

"You can draw some conclusions," said a top Bush aide involved in the 
decision-making process. "It's been 30 days and he hasn't added them 
in."

"They like to be in the room whenever there is a need, but whenever 
there is a need for their involvement the president can invite any 
agency to participate at a Cabinet meeting," the Bush aide, who is 
familiar with the discussions, said of the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency and the drug czar.

"That's more along the lines of what he will be looking at doing."

Allbaugh, Bush's longtime aide and friend, will have no trouble 
getting the president's attention when needed, regardless of whether 
his post is retained at Cabinet level as it was under Clinton.

Heading into his recent Senate confirmation hearing, Allbaugh 
deflected questions about whether he believes his job should be 
Cabinet level.

Bush has yet to appoint a drug czar -- officially the director of the 
Office of National Drug Control Policy -- to replace Barry McCaffrey. 
A decision on whether that post will be maintained at Cabinet level 
could depend on who gets the job.

Earlier this year, several Republican lawmakers told Bush in a letter 
that "any downgrade of the drug czar position below Cabinet status at 
the outset of your administration would be a political misstep."

If Bush jettisons the drug czar from the Cabinet, he could find 
support from Bill Bennett, the first person to hold the post when it 
was created in 1989. Bennett does not believe the Cabinet question is 
a crucial one.

"Whether it is at Cabinet level is not as important as how the 
president reacts to that position and the issue of drugs," said 
Bennett spokesman Jeff Kwitowski.

"President Bush should put his arm around the next drug czar just 
like former President Bush did when Bill Bennett was drug czar and 
made it a very important job in his administration."

Subtly, but consistently, Bush has signaled he may be ready to move 
the drug battle in a different direction, perhaps away from the law 
enforcement-heavy approach generally favored by Republicans, 
including Ashcroft.

"One of the things that we have got to make sure of in our society is 
that our drug-prevention programs are effective," Bush told CNN 
earlier this year.

"And I think a lot of people are coming to the realization that maybe 
long minimum sentences for the first-time users may not be the best 
way to occupy jail space and/or heal people from their disease. And 
I'm willing to look at that."

Michael Franc, a vice president at the Heritage Foundation think tank 
that once proposed paring the Cabinet down to five positions, said 
agency heads see an "independent value" in getting a Cabinet seat.

"It sends a message as to how important an issue is in a symbolic 
sense," said Franc, noting that an agency head's bully pulpit gets 
added clout by being able to say "I'm at the table."

But, Franc notes, being at the table does not guarantee an agency 
head has the president's ear. And not being in the Cabinet does not 
mean an agency head has been cut off.

"If you had to trade one for the other it would be better to trade 
Cabinet status for real authority," he said.

Franc also sees added value in a slimmed-down Cabinet.

"To the extent that you willy-nilly expand it you are diminishing 
each member. This administration is pretty clear that it wants to 
focus on a handful of clearly articulated priority issues," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Kirk Bauer