On June 17, 1971, President Richard Nixon announced that the United States was fighting a “War on Drugs.” Nixon declared that drug abuse was “public enemy number one in the United States,” a crisis that forced the federal government to realign massive resources toward enforcement of drug law and drug treatment. Two years later, Nixon established the Drug Enforcement Agency, which still oversees drug policy today.
Over forty years and $1 trillion of spending later, the War on Drugs is a controversial policy. In 2011, the self-appointed Global Commission on Drug Policy, consisting of political leaders and public intellectuals, released a report stating, “The global war on drugs has failed.” No president, however, has seriously challenged the policy, and spending on the program has increased annually.
US drug policy also affects the United States’ relationship with Mexico because Mexican drug traffickers sell in high quantities to Americans. As many as sixty thousand people have died in Mexico as a result of drug-related violence in the last six years, and Mexican officials have repeatedly called for a shift in the United States’ approach to drug law enforcement. Instead of employing significant resources toward low-level arrests, as the United States does now, Mexico hopes to “adjust the strategy [to] focus on certain type of crimes, like kidnapping, homicide, extortion.” This would require American cooperation in the form of relaxing low-level drug arrests.
While it is unlikely that either President Obama or Governor Romney would entirely reverse US drug policy if elected in 2012, they would take very different approaches going forward.
Step 1
Pre-debate poll:
Tell us your opinion before the debate starts to set the starting line
The Obama Approach To The Drug War Is Working
Agree - Thanks for voting! Please proceed to read the debate below
Please vote to proceed to the debate
Step 2
Who makes the better argument?
The Obama administration has indicated that it will publicly address the failures of the War on Drugs if it wins a second term. President Obama’s Director of U.S. National Drug Control Policy—or Drug Czar—R. Gil Kerlikowske has rejected the term “War on Drugs,” stating, “the Obama Administration supports a ‘third way’ approach because balanced drug policies such as those in Sweden have accomplished much for the countries that have implemented them.”Nearing the end of the administration’s first term, however, the rhetoric has changed more than the policy. In his Fiscal Year 2013 budget, Obama requested $25.6 billion for drug enforcement—the highest annual total yet. Short of a nationwide restructuring of drug policy, the president’s ability to affect the everyday implementation of drug laws is limited. So far, President Obama has emphasized judicial and penal reform. Currently the United States incarcerates a higher percentage of its population than any other country in the world, and 22 percent of those incarcerated in federal and state prisons are drug offenders. Obama hopes to begin to address these numbers. rnrnHe has supported alternatives to current detention strategies both in principle and as a cost-cutting technique. Specifically, he supports establishing of special drug courts and sentencing offenders to drug treatment programs rather than prisons. He also signed into law the Fair Sentencing Act, which reduces the disparity in sentencing of crack cocaine users as opposed to sentencing for cocaine users. rnrnThese judicial policy changes are cost-effective, pragmatic toward the goal of reducing drug use, and just. Incarceration costs approximately $30,600 annually per inmate, so treatment programs and reduced mandatory minimums for sentencing will save taxpayer dollars. The RAND Corporation (a government-supported non-profit think tank), among others, has found repeatedly that drug policies prioritizing treatment over punishment are more effective, while costing less.rnrnFinally, Obama has made US drug policy more just by reducing a sentencing disparity that had unduly punished African Americans for decades. On the side of administrative policy, the most significant change Obama has made has been to curtail the domestic drug eradication program, called the U.S. National Guard Counterdrug program. Obama’s proposed Fiscal Year 2013 budget cuts spending on this program in half, which would reduce the demand for drug trafficking across the border from Mexico.rnrnIf reelected, Obama would take further steps to scale back the so-called War on Drugs. In addition to Drug Czar Kerlikowske’s rejection of that term, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has also acknowledged that the United States holds much of the responsibility for the ongoing violence in Mexico. Obama has since expressed willingness to collaborate with Mexican leaders to change policy, but has not proposed a detailed plan to do so. In terms of the direction of drug policy as a whole, several Obama “aides and associates” have indicated that the President will bring drug policy to the forefront of the national discussion if he is reelected, but it is unclear what specific steps he would take, going forward. rnrnUnless drug policy suddenly finds itself thrust into the presidential debates—an unlikely prospect—American citizens (and people affected internationally) will have to wait and see, but Obama’s record suggests he will continue to scale back the War on Drugs, if only in relatively minor ways.
Governor Romney would not scale back the War on Drugs, as he supports the punitive approach that characterizes drug policy in the status quo. Romney supports punitive strategies toward criminal justice in general, such as “three strikes and you’re out” laws, which impose mandatory sentences for people who have committed three offenses. Romney maintains that those who break current laws should be punished, and therefore has proposes that states should contract with for-profit prison companies to continue expanding prison populations in order to keep up with current rates of incarceration.rnrnIf larger prisons are necessary in order to keep drug users and dealers off the streets, then they are a necessary cost. Romney also has a record of preferring prohibitory policies over those that allow drug use with the intention of making it safer. For example, as Governor of Massachusetts, he vetoed a bill to allow the sale of syringes without a prescription. He has not since stated that he would take a different approach as president, and his position on marijuana use suggests that he would continue to support prohibitory laws. Romney has staunchly opposed calls to legalize and regulate marijuana, making a moral argument against such a change by claiming that pot legalization is simply a pet issue of a “pleasure-seeking generation that never grew up.”rnrnWhile President Obama has not supported the legalization of marijuana, Romney is stronger in calling for harsh penalties for marijuana users in order to demonstrate the seriousness of the crime. He has also gone further than Obama in his opposition to marijuana by coming out against the legalization of the drug for medical use. Like Obama, Romney has indicated a willingness to talk to Mexican leaders about collaboration and has admitted the need to address large-scale demand for drugs in the United States. rnrnWhen asked how to improve the War on Drugs, he stated, “We gotta stop the demand here in this country.” Additionally, he told the Hispanic Leadership Network that along with preventing demand through education, the United States needs to improve its control of the Mexican border. rnrnOverall, Mitt Romney supports the War on Drugs, while acknowledging some room for reform. He will try to control domestic demand for drugs by prohibiting their use, educating young people about their harms (as exemplified by his record as Governor of Massachusetts), and punishing those who break the law. Through education and regulation, the United States can win the War on Drugs, rather than appease drug growers, traffickers, dealers and users.
Step 3
POST DEBATE POLL
Did one of the arguments change your mind?
The Obama Approach To The Drug War Is Working
VIEW DEBATE ROUND 1 RESULTS
Agree - Thanks for voting again! Here are the results:
Before
After
morelessAgreeDisagreeUndecided
"Agree""Disagree"Neither argumenthas changed the most minds
IDEA creates local clubs and establishes independent debate associations throughout the world, offering young people the opportunity to develop their skills and knowledge by voicing and critically examining issues that directly affect their lives. Through helping individuals start their own local debate chapters, IDEA encourages students around the world to question, to listen to one another and to explore even the most volatile subjects openly and in the spirit of tolerance and cooperation.
Editor's Note: HuffPost College teamed with the International Debate Education Association to produce the following debate.
On June 17, 1971, President Richard Nixon announced that the United Stat...
Editor's Note: HuffPost College teamed with the International Debate Education Association to produce the following debate.
On June 17, 1971, President Richard Nixon announced that the United Stat...
What does it take to win a drug war? You don't. Drug addiction should be treated as a medical issue, not a criminal problem. The decades of the drug war have proven that the criminal justice approach to reducing drug use hasn't worked in the least, so isn't it time to try something new?
Kaunisenkeli: What does it take to win a drug war? You
From Nixon to Obama, the "War on Drugs" has been an abysmal failure and instead of realizing this and pushing for change, they continue to try and follow the status quo. It isn't working and it never has worked. The fact is there are too many lobbyists to keep them illegal and we get these weak excuses shoved down our throats.
Nesman90: From Nixon to Obama, the "War on Drugs" has been
The logical solution to the drug problem would be to legalize, tax and regulate. The government makes millions rather than losing billions, people get what they want (and will get regardless of legality) legally and the regulations will make it possible for the government to keep a close eye on the buyers and sellers. No one loses. Jails become less crowded, drug-related violence virtually ceases to exist and tax money from the sale of these drug is goes into the hands of the government.
heatherox: The logical solution to the drug problem would be to
"Jails become less crowded" is one of the reasons it will be fought tooth and nail by the prison industry lobby. This is their bread and butter. Please do not get me wrong: I agree with you. But until we get profit out of prisons, it will probably be a pipe dream. F&F
Marvin_Lowe: "Jails become less crowded" is one of the reasons it
I would imagine that people who pay attention to this issue might have a different take on Obama's history with the "War on Drugs".
I do expect HuffPo to support Obama's reelection but this is a tactic I hadn't seen before.
tdwfl: I would imagine that people who pay attention to this
Legalize Marijuana.
Shortly after you will see many problems in America solve themselves.
No stoned person ever shot up a movie theater. You know who did? An eccentric and disenfranchised man, who was broken by the pursuit of success and knowledge. I believe things would have gone much differently if he had given up, smoked a doob, and found himself a nice girl with low standards.
Before long, he would have forgotten that he was even angry.
Dayton_Douglass: Legalize Marijuana. Shortly after you will see many problems in
the way to win this drug war is to corner the market, and regulate and tax the sale of drugs. sure we'll need to put some needle exchanges in place, but we're already spending a lot on this issue, why not redirect it? pharmaceuticals are just legal cartels, and doctor's and pharmacists their pushers, let them do what they do best and expand their offerings.
rainonyourparade: the way to win this drug war is to corner
How about 'unload the machine guns, take off the hitler hats, sell the drugs at/through the drug stores(hence the name), and take a lot more practical, common-sense approach to the whole thing with an emphasis on personal liberty and responsibility'? If you can buy your dope legal and cheap, and be in your altered state, and you're not really causing a problem for anyone else, who honestly cares if you spend the rest of your life in a purple haze? Some people do it anyway, but it's more accepted because it's called 'prescription medication'. Sell people on sobriety, at 1/1,000th the net overall taxpayer burden. It's the modern age, the Information Age, if you die face-down in the gutter with a heroin needle in your arm, at some point you failed to exercise some personal initiative there, frankly. Put educational/informational resources out there, but de-escalate the entire thing waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyy down. Wanna get high? Knock yourself out, just, don't take anyone else with you. Community resources are important, teaching parents, teachers, kids, businesspeople the signs and symptoms of drug use, so that other people know what's going on when they see it and can steer clear of it. It's your life, do you want to wreck it on meth or coke or heroin or whatever? By all means, but it's on you. Educate yourself, don't get hooked on dope or credit cards or other addictive things. Other people will profit, by your demise.
realitytrumpsbull: How about 'unload the machine guns, take off the hitler
If drug addicts wanna get high... It ain't my concern!! But like most of them, they don't take any responsibility for their own actions and start hurting others. They can't get jobs cause they can't pass a drug test during the interview process, I have had some hit me up for clean urine so they can use it during their process... I said NO!!!! Some have even turned to robbing and stealing, now it becomes our problem... I don't like having a weapon pointed at me over a few measly dollars so that the drug addict can score some cash for his next fix!!! Sorry but it is starting to
Become a big problem when an innocent person dies over this stupid act... The best solution I've come up with for now is to arm myself!! Any person who wants to rob and steal from me will meet my friend.. GLOCK 9MM and I ain't afraid to use it!!
paguilarr: If drug addicts wanna get high... It ain't my concern!!
We will have a illegal drug problem in the US until we face the issue for what it is and not what we pretend it to be. This "war" will go on until we take the profit from selling illegal drugs. I cannot understand why the American public or whoever it is that insists that we adhere to and follow the ridiculous programs and phony standards that have produced disastrous results at a huge economic and financial cost. It appears we are gleefully and sadistically punishing ourselves.
We know and have know for many years how to solve the problem. It was done in the early 1930s with the repeal of prohibition. After the profit was taken away with the repeal, the gangsters engaged in the commerce of selling booze disappeared. We have empirical proof, the paradigm, the template, the model to shut down the illegal drug trade. It is a matter of wanting to make the suffering go away; not a lack of knowledge. Who are the perpetrators and enablers of the drug trade? It isn't the growers/providers or the transporters or the sellers. They are merely incremental parts of the machine.
swweaver: We will have a illegal drug problem in the US
Loading comments… 
Posted: 09/04/12 09:13 AM ET | Updated: 09/04/12 09:15 AM ET