WHITE HOUSE MUST TAKE LEAD IN DRUG WARS

Unfortunately, Only Lip Service Has Been Given To Demand Reduction Or Drug
Prevention

The use of illegal drugs is probably the most serious problem facing
America and most other nations because increasing numbers of users are
chancing addiction, irreversible physical or mental impairment and death.
Yet Americans spend an estimated $63.2 billion annually on these drugs
while, globally, the price tag is around $400 billion.

Added to this is the astronomical toll exacted on society. Workplace
accidents, production losses, increases in crime, victimization, hospital,
court, prison and related impacts cost Americans about $110 billion annually.

Other consequences include family fallout, corruption of enforcement
officers and government officials employed by the very cartels they were
charged to abolish and increasing numbers of seemingly legitimate
businesses and corporations turning out to be drug trafficking
money-laundering fronts.

Worldwide, billions of dollars have been spent in counter measures. The
United States spent $18.5 billion last year and has budgeted $19.2 billion
for this fiscal year. These funds are tilted toward law enforcement and
interdiction efforts that require large sums for firearms and aircraft.
Unfortunately, only lip service has been given to demand reduction or drug
prevention.

Arguably, the lack of a clear focus on the prevention and treatment of drug
abuse for the past several years accounts for the rise in the numbers of
new users and addicts. According to the National Household Survey on Drug
Use, in 1998 there were 13.6 million Americans aged 12 and older who were
users of any illicit drug. The Office of National Drug Control Policy
(ONDCP) estimates that there were about 5 million persons who met the
drug-addicted criteria.

This is in stark contrast to the Reagan-Bush era, when there was a highly
publicized and widely circulated commitment against illegal drug
trafficking and use. The result: The number of drug users went from 25
million in 1980 to 11 million in 1992 while the number of addicts went from
6.5 million to 1.5 million during the same period.

These dramatic decreases were largely due to President Ronald Reagan and
the first lady, Nancy Reagan. Their frequent and effective use of the White
House "bully pulpit" rallied America against illegal drugs and the
syndicates that market them.

The Reagans' message was heard and acted on because it was consistent and
because they were perceived as sincere. Their admonitions urging parents to
counsel their children and unite with other parents in protecting their
homes, schools and neighborhoods, therefore, was heeded.

It was also Mr. Reagan's policy that the drug war be waged on the basis of
a balanced interdiction and prevention strategy. While fighting to stop the
cultivation, production, distribution and sales of illegal drugs (supply),
equal efforts were being made to change world opinion against drugs and the
drug cartels through programs that emphasized education, prevention,
treatment and community mobilization (demand).

Some have said the war on drugs has failed because the numbers of users and
addicts has increased despite more than a decade of significant
counter-narcotics expenditures. I disagree that the drug war has been lost,
but it is far from being won.

In order to win it, President George W. Bush must demonstrate a will and a
determination that is stronger than that of the thugs in the drug trade.

During the past eight years, there was no use of the White House "bully
pulpit" and no apparent conviction or will to urge the American people and
others around the world not to use illegal drugs. America's defenses were
lowered, creating an open field for the drug traffickers.

It will be the moral voice of the president, not a big budget, that will
make the difference between winning and losing the drug war. It will be his
example that will turn kids away from drugs and mark the decline in drug
trafficking as a business.