DATE: Tuesday, November 25, 1997            TAG: 9711250529

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA 

SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS 

DATELINE: RALEIGH                           LENGTH:   98 lines

BRUTON BECOMES A FORCE FOR CHANGE IN THE STATE HE DOES IT HIS WAY

David Bruton, the man Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. appointed secretary of health and human services, has the best kind of job security. He doesn't need his job, giving him confidence to do things his own way.

He's a liberal in an administration with conservative leanings. He wants to experiment with a needle-exchange program for drug addicts, doesn't think welfare reform will save money, believes government can run some programs better than business and is skeptical of the General Assembly's approach to sex education.

Yet, he has charmed Republican lawmakers with whom he has wide philosophical disagreements.

Bruton, 62, is a pediatrician from Southern Pines. He has long been active in politics and community affairs. But, other than a stint in the Air Force, he had never held a full-time government job until Hunt appointed him to the Cabinet 11 months ago.

Now he's running a department with an $8.2 billion budget and 18,500 employees. The department's responsibilities include running welfare and health programs, providing child protection, regulating nursing homes, operating detention centers and running psychiatric hospitals and centers for the mentally retarded.

``Risking things in government is tough sledding,'' Bruton said during a recent panel discussion on health care. ``The best asset I can offer this job is the security I have. I don't need the job. We're breaking some furniture in the department. Causing arguments is my favorite thing in life.''

He takes the edge off such statements with a gentle drawl that seems suited to the sage of a country store. His appearance is soft, non-threatening - so reassuring that some lawmakers say they have to remind themselves to stay on guard.

``He appears to be a little cuddly, fuzzy, warm personality, and he is,'' said Rep. Charlotte Gardner, R-Rowan, a chairwoman of the House budget subcommittee on human resources. ``He's also very smart and deliberate and knows exactly what he wants, and he's going to get it. I'm very aware he has an agenda, and we're going to disagree on things.''

Bruton said his frankness can get him into trouble. But Franklin Freeman, Hunt's chief of staff, considers it an asset.

``He is forthcoming, and he does not dissemble,'' Freeman told the Fayetteville Observer-Times. ``In a Cabinet position, that is essential. The governor needs the best advice he can get.''

Bruton absorbs facts and statistics. Without using notes, he can tick off statistics on Medicaid costs and recipients in several categories, discuss the minutiae of welfare reform and cite figures on rising costs of child immunizations.

``He is so bright, and he just soaks it up,'' said Barbara Matula, former director of the state Medicaid program.

Despite Bruton's open opposition to many of the initiatives of the Republican-controlled state House, his department's relationship with the legislature seems to have improved. ``At least he'll speak to me,'' said Rep. Cherie Berry, R-Catawba, a leading proponent of welfare reform. ``He's worked very hard to have a relationship with all of us.''

Bruton is credited with helping the House and Democratic-controlled Senate reach a deal this year on a welfare-reform experiment. It will let some counties, yet to be chosen, set their own requirements for cash-assistance programs. They will be able to set standards for eligibility, work and length of assistance. The counties will be able to divert any savings, up to 20 percent, for other county programs.

Despite his role as intermediary, Bruton doesn't think there's much money to be saved. Bruton would have preferred that any savings go into other programs for families.

``It's possible that if you give those counties the flexibility to do some things, they may find some things,'' Bruton said. ``Am I going to support it now that it is the law of the land? Yes. Am I going to enthusiastically try to make it work? Yes.''

Bruton said the department had a good year in the legislature. But not all its proposals were popular, even with Democrats. He backed a proposal for a trial needle-exchange program that would be designed to cut the spread of disease among drug addicts. Bruton said such a program could actually cut use and build trust between drug-abuse counselors and users. ``We could not get a single pilot program through the General Assembly this time,'' he said.

He doesn't hesitate to criticize past legislative initiatives, including a law that requires that abstinence be taught as the centerpiece of sex-education programs. ``You think talking sexually active teens out of having sex is going to be very effective?'' he asked. ``Hell, they passed a law that said the only thing we could teach is: Don't do it.''

Despite taking some controversial views, Bruton remains popular because few people question his motives, said former state Sen. Teena Little, a Republican from Southern Pines. Bruton was the doctor for Little's three children, who are now grown, and a grandchild. He practiced in Southern Pines for 30 years and was a partner in the only pediatric clinic in Moore County.

``There are liberals, and there are liberals,'' Little said. ``David Bruton would be categorized in Moore County as someone who cares. If David Bruton fought for something, it was fighting for somebody else; it was not a fight for David Bruton.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

ASSOCIATED PRESS

North Carolina Secretary of Health and Human Services David Bruton

is known for his charm and forthright opinions on controversial

issues.

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