BUSH DECIDING ON RESUMPTION OF DRUG INTERDICTION FLIGHTS IN LATIN AMERICA

President Bush has received a recommendation that the U.S. resume its support for drug interdiction flights in Latin America, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters July 4.

The President "is pleased" to receive the recommendation on a subject he "is very interested in," Fleischer said.

Bush, however, has not yet made a formal decision on the matter, and it's "unclear" when he will, the Press Secretary said.

"But the President very much wants to take strong actions to fight drug -- narcotics trafficking in South America and Central America, and work closely with our allies there, who share the American concern about drug trafficking," said Fleischer.

"So this is something the President is looking at and he has received recommendations to resume this program with new safeguards," Fleischer said. "And the President is going to take a careful look at it. He's determined to fight the drug trade and was pleased to receive the recommendation."

Asked if the recommendation to resume the program would transfer authority for it from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to the State Department, Fleischer said "under the proposal the President got, this would be run by the State Department."

News reports say the program would permit the United States to identify and locate suspected drug planes but it would be for Colombian and Peruvian military aircraft to down the planes, if they ignore requests to land.

The New York Times reported July 4 that the flights could begin in Colombia as early as this fall and would resume in Peru later.

U.S. supported surveillance flights over Peru were stopped last year after a small civilian plane carrying an American missionary family -- Jim and Veronica Bowers, and their two children, and the pilot Kevin Donaldson -- was shot down in April 2001, mistakenly identified as a plane carrying drugs.

Veronica and the Bowers' infant daughter were killed and Donaldson, who crash landed the bullet-ridden plane in the Amazon, was injured.

BUSH UNVEILS POLICY TO REDUCE CITIZENSHIP WAIT FOR ACTIVE MILITARY

President Bush has signed an executive order that permits non-citizens on active duty in the U.S. military's war on terrorism to apply immediately for U.S. citizenship.

The executive order, signed July 3, allows up to 15,000 such men and women to apply immediately to become U.S. citizens instead of waiting the normal three years for legal aliens serving in the military and five years for ordinary green card holders.

Under U.S. law, non-citizen lawful permanent residents may serve in the U.S. military.

White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters July 4 that the order designates a period of military hostilities with a hostile foreign force that began with the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon September 11.

"The period will extend indefinitely until the President terminates it by future executive order," Fleischer said. "During the period identified by the executive order, any non-citizen serving on active duty in the U.S. armed services can receive expedited naturalization consideration."

Bush discussed his executive order in an Independence Day speech in Ripley, West Virginia, where he attended the small town's Fourth of July celebrations.

"Thousands of our men and women in uniform were born in other countries, and now spend each day in honorable service to their adopted land," the President said.

"Many of them are still waiting for the chance to become American citizens because of the waiting period for citizenship. These men and women love our country. They show it in their daily devotion to duty. Out of respect for their brave service in this time of war, I have signed an executive order allowing them an immediate opportunity to petition for citizenship in the United States of America."