Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) continues to accuse the Bush administration of underestimating the threat of methamphetamine use in the U.S. and said members of Congress are frustrated with Bush's drug policy, the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette reported June 17.

Souder chided Bush for planning to end funding for local anti-drug task forces and reduce grantmaking under the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program. He hinted that concern over the overall direction of federal drug policy has translated into lack of support for the administration's national youth anti-drug media campaign.

Anti-drug groups criticized a White House meth and prescription-drug abuse strategy, released earlier this month, as underwhelming. "The strategy simply repackages the administration existing budget priorities and ignores key programs that provide the majority of the community infrastructure and core support to local law enforcement, prevention and treatment efforts to deal with meth where it has emerged as a crisis," said Sue Thau, a consultant with Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America.

"The disconnect appears to be the leadership at ONDCP," added Ron Brooks, president of the National Narcotic Officers Associations Coalition.