KEEPING DRUGS OFF OUR STREETS: THE LEGACY OF SEN. PAUL COVERDELL

Today, drugs from places such as Colombia are cheap and plentiful in this
country --- and American kids are using them. In fact, more children today
are using and experimenting with drugs than 10 years ago. With an abundant
supply of illicit drugs, the traffickers have started targeting children
ages 10, 11, 12.

Sen. Paul Coverdell and I determined that this abundance of drugs on our
streets and in our schools is the result of the current administration's
imbalanced national drug strategy --- one that doesn't do enough to stop
drugs before they reach our shores. To be effective, we need a balanced
anti-drug approach that includes a solid commitment to demand reduction,
including prevention, education and treatment; domestic law enforcement; as
well as international drug eradication and interdiction.

Fortunately, Coverdell realized that to succeed in permanently reducing
illicit drug use in this country, we must restore our international drug
fighting capability. Furthermore, he also knew that our entire hemisphere
needs to be committed to solving the drug problem because the drug trade is
the most dominant internal threat to the economic and political stability of
Latin American democracies.

Tragically, America's drug habit is fueling this political crisis. Every
drug deal made in the United States feeds the violence in Colombia,
empowering the guerrillas and right-wing paramilitaries to indiscriminately
kill and destabilize Latin America's oldest democracy as they seek to
protect drug traffickers.

Coverdell and I agreed that a hemispheric partnership was needed to reduce
the presence of illegal drugs from Colombia. We were the first to offer a
U.S.-Colombian assistance plan, and just a few short weeks ago, President
Clinton signed into law a $1.3 billion investment to put that plan into
effect. Thanks to Coverdell's tenacity, drive and hard work, we have started
to restore balance to our current drug policy.

Paul Coverdell saw the Colombia assistance effort not simply as a way to
eliminate the drug menace, but as a means to remove violent impediments to
prosperity, democracy and real peace throughout our hemisphere. One of his
lasting legacies will be that he set the wheels in motion for countries in
our hemisphere --- our neighbors --- to work together to fight drugs. A
fitting way to honor Paul is to see that his efforts and his vision for our
Western Hemisphere are realized.