----------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENTS OF COMMERCE, JUSTICE, AND STATE, THE JUDICIARY, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 1990. ----------------------------------------------------------- Hearings before a Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations, House of Representatives, One Hundred First Congress, First Session. September 13, 1989. ----------------------------------------------------------- Washington : U.S. G.P.O. : For sale by the U.S. G.P.O., Supt. of Docs., Congressional Sales Office, 1989. ----------------------------------------------------------- GOV DOC. # Y 4.Ap 6/1:C 73/2/990/pt.9 ----------------------------------------------------------- Congressman Neil Smith (D-Iowa), was Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, The Judiciary, and Related Committees. Congressman Bill Alexander (D-Arkansas) is speaking to U.S. Attorney General Richard L. Thornburgh and National Drug Control Policy Director William J. Bennett. The following excerpts are from pp. 1, 67-68. DEPARTMENTS OF COMMERCE, JUSTICE, AND STATE, THE JUDICIARY, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 1990 _____________ Wednesday, September 13, 1989 NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL STRATEGY WITNESSES HON. DICK THORNBURGH, ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES HON. WILLIAM J. BENNETT, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY HON. RICHARD DARMAN, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET OPENING STATEMENT Mr. SMITH of Iowa. Today, the Appropriations Committee is holding a hearing to discuss President George Bush's National Drug Control Strategy. A major element, of course, is the request for $7.9 billion for anti-drug abuse funding. That compares to $5.7 billion that was in the February request. Joining us today on this side of the table are Mr. Whitten, the chairman of the full committee; and two of the subcommittee chairmen, Mr. Obey and Mr. Murtha. Appearing for the Administration are the Director of the National Drug Control Policy, William J. Bennett; Attorney General Richard L. Thornburgh; and Mr. Richard G. Darman, Director of the Office of Management and Budget. I would like to thank all of you for being here.... Mr. COUGHLIN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. SMITH of Iowa. Mr. Alexander. COMPREHENSIVE DRUG CONTROL POLICY Mr. ALEXANDER. Thank you. Welcome, gentlemen, for coming to the committee today, and I want to commend especially Mr. Bennett on the signal effort that you have demonstrated in producing the National Drug Control Strategy. During the 20 years that I have observed this issue, this is the first Administration that has presented a comprehensive drug control, anti-drug policy. I certainly agree with the Chairman of our committee that the drug abuse is the greatest threat to our national security, even greater than Communism was 20 years ago, and that we should treat it equally as a threat to our national security and to the future of our Nation. I agree that we need more enforcement, more prosecution, more judges, more jails, more treatment, more disruption of supply, and more education to meet this demand. And I pledge my support. To restate my statement over a minute ago, I will present an amendment to be offered as a part of the legislative package which will exempt the provisions of the Alexander-Brooke amendment, which now requires an automatic cutoff of Federal funds to foreign countries if those nations are in arrears on payments and obligations are more than one year. It originally started out to be 60 days. The Senate made it a year, and that is how it got to be the Brooke amendment. There are two questions which I would like to ask. One has to do with our own law enforcement. While I don't want to dwell on the past, there is one issue that must be addressed if the people in Arkansas are to have any confidence in any law enforcement initiative. AIRPORT INVESTIGATION It is known as the Mena, Arkansas airport investigation. It is an investigation that has been on and off now for a number of years. It is one that arises out of an alleged transport of guns from Mena Airport to Central America, and one that in which drugs were returned to Mena, Arkansas for distribution. I have here a copy of a statement which I will present to you from one Bill Duncan, a former Special Agent with the Criminal Division of the Internal Revenue Service, in which he says that his intended testimony before a Congressional committee was compromised - where he was ordered to be compromised, and that he believes that indictments should result from this investigation where none have occurred. I will present to you, Mr. Attorney General, a summary of this investigation. I am sure that it is one that you will want to know about. It is one that occurred before your tenure of office, but one that deserves further investigation. Congress is looking into it on three fronts in the House, at least, and on at least one front in the Senate. My question to you is: Will you pursue the investigation? Attorney General THORNBURGH. We certainly will, Congressman. I am not familiar with the case, but we will pursue it.