Brief and Cordial Confirmation Hearing for F.D.A. Nominee

By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG

ASHINGTON, Oct. 7 — President Bush's nominee for commissioner of food and drugs, Dr. Mark B. McClellan, appeared before the Senate today for a brief and cordial confirmation hearing that seemed to clear the way for his confirmation by the Senate.

"Hopefully we'll get you on the job very quickly," Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, who led the hearing, told Dr. McClellan.

As chairman of the Senate health committee, Mr. Kennedy stood in the way of a previous nominee, so his support is crucial for Dr. McClellan. The senator said his committee would vote as early as Wednesday on Dr. McClellan's confirmation, and said he hoped the full Senate would confirm Dr. McClellan before it goes into recess, scheduled for the end of next week.

Dr. McClellan, a physician and economist who now serves on Mr. Bush's Council of Economic Advisers, did not make any new policy pronouncements at today's hearing, which lasted little more than an hour.

He said that he believes television advertising for prescription drugs helps promote "treatment of conditions that are seriously undertreated," and that while he believes tobacco is an "avoidable health risk," he does not intend to tackle the contentious issue of whether the Food and Drug Administration should regulate cigarettes.

Noting that the Supreme Court has declined to grant the agency such power, Dr. McClellan said, "That is not going to be on the table, at least in the short run."

Dr. McClellan's views disappointed at least one consumer advocate, Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Center for Policy Research for Women and Families. "He didn't make any commitment to strengthen the authority of the F.D.A.," she noted.

If confirmed, Dr. McClellan, who is 39, will assume control of a vast agency with a $1.6 billion budget and the authority to regulate products that account for 20 cents of every consumer dollar spent.

The agency has lacked a commissioner since Mr. Bush took office, in part because the White House and Senate Democrats, notably Mr. Kennedy, could not agree on a suitable candidate.