WASHINGTON -- In his first online interview, Republican nominee George W. Bush may face questions Wednesday about rumors of past drug use, as well as queries about economics, foreign affairs and medical research.

Most questions submitted in advance of CNN's half-hour interview requested additional details about the Texas governor's election-year proposals.

But others exploited the rare opportunity to widen the debate in a presidential campaign in which both sides have highlighted a handful of issues culled from focus groups and public opinion polling.

"I have noticed that recently the major issues of this campaign have revolved around taxes, education, the military, abortion and health care," read one submission. "Yet I haven't seen a focus on certain scientific issues ... what is your stance on cloning humans and animals? ... do you support stem cell research?"

To be sure, the questions ran the gamut from silly to serious.

One person wanted to know why Bush had not engaged in "passionate wife-kissing" after it proved so successful for Vice President Al Gore at the Democratic convention, while another wanted the Republican's take on returning to the long-abandoned gold standard.

That is par for the course, said Carin Dessauer, election director of CNN Interactive.

"The beauty of an online interview is that real people can participate," said Dessauer. "People who get online to participate have great substantive questions to ask."

"Obviously, just like any other interview, the goal is to be as comprehensive and hit as many topics as possible," Dessauer said.

QUESTIONS NOT FILTERED

CNN political correspondent Candy Crowley will moderate the interview, selecting questions from a live stream on Wednesday morning.

Dessauer said questions will not be filtered, although Crowley and producers will retain editorial control.

If early submissions are any indication, questions about Bush's refusal to discuss whether or not he used drugs in his youth are almost sure to come up.

"Have you ever used cocaine? A simple yes or no would suffice," read a question Linda Kekumu of Hawaii submitted Monday night.

Kekumu told Reuters she is more disappointed the Bush has refused to answer the question. It does not matter if the rumors are true, she said.

"I just want an answer," said Kekumu, who plans to vote for Gore in the Nov. 7 presidential election.

Republicans said Bush will refuse to answer such questions, as he has done since the rumors first surfaced during the Republican primaries.

"He is not going to go into a laundry list of details about things from 20 to 30 years ago," said Bush spokesman Dan Bartlett.

With snide questions asking him to identify world leaders by name also popping up on the list, Bush could be forced to relive an embarrassing foreign affairs pop quiz posed to him by a television reporter during the primary season.

"He'll treat it like he does any other question on the campaign trail," said Bartlett.

An interactive interview with President Clinton last February attracted more than 10,000 people within 25 minutes. CNN was not able to give a precise estimate, but a spokeswoman said she expects a significant audience, including about one in five viewers from overseas.