Meese Asks Drug Tests For `Most' Workers; Mayors Assail Federal Efforts As Poorly Run, Underfunded

Attorney General Edwin Meese III, saying the nation needs "zero tolerance of drugs in any place, any time," called yesterday for virtually all workers in the country to be tested by their employers for use of illicit drugs.

Meese told a gathering of mayors and police chiefs that such testing is "an absolute necessity" to curb the nation's rising drug problem. Fear of losing a job could be the most effective deterrent, he said.

His audience was unmoved. About three hours after Meese spoke, those attending the meeting called by the U.S. Conference of Mayors approved a…