Democratic Party on Drugs

	Democratic Party on Drugs Party Platform

Past time to end the failed "War on Drugs"

It is past time to end the failed "War on Drugs," which has imprisoned millions of Americans--disproportionately Black people and Latinos--and hasn't been effective in reducing drug use. Democrats support policies that will reorient our public safety approach toward prevention, and away from over-policing--including by making evidence-based investments in jobs, housing, education, and the arts that will make our nation fairer, freer, and more prosperous. Source: Democratic Party Platform adopted at 2020 Convention , Jul 27, 2020

Reduce racial disparities in sentencing for drug crimes

The administration of justice should be fair and impartial. That's why we enacted the Fair Sentencing Act, reducing racial disparities in sentencing for drug crimes.

We will continue to nominate and confirm judges who are men and women of unquestionable talent and character and will always demonstrate their faithfulness to our law and our Constitution and bring with them a sense of how American society works and how the American people live.

Source: 2012 Democratic Party Platform , Sep 4, 2012

Join Central American governments to combat narco-traffic

We have strengthened cooperation with Mexico, Colombia, and throughout Central America to combat narco-traffickers and criminal gangs that threaten their citizens and ours. We will also work to disrupt organized crime networks seeking to use the Caribbean to smuggle drugs into our country. As we collectively confront these challenges, we will continue to support the region's security forces, border security, and police with the equipment, training, and technologies they need to keep their communities safe. We will improve coordination and share more information so that those who traffic in drugs and in human beings have fewer places to hide. And we will continue to put unprecedented pressure on cartel finances, including in the United States. Source: 2012 Democratic Party Platform , Sep 4, 2012

Bring to justice those bringing drugs to America

We will increase efforts to combat drug-trafficking throughout the Caribbean and ensure that those involved in bringing drugs into the U.S. are brought to justice. We will assist in combating corruption so that funds made available for development are used appropriately. Source: The Democratic Platform for America, p.11 , Jul 10, 2004

Drugs in prison: get clean to get out

We have to test prisoners for drugs while they are in jail, treat them, and break up the drug rings inside our prison system. Drug and alcohol abuse is implicated in the crimes of 80 percent of the criminals behind bars. We should make prisoners a simple deal: get clean to get out, stay clean to stay out. We should impose strict supervision of those who have just been released on parole. In return, we should help them make it in the workplace. Source: 2000 Democratic National Platform as adopted by the DNC , Aug 15, 2000

Dry up drug demand via more enforcement plus more treatment

We should send a strong message to every child: drugs are wrong & can kill you. We need to dry up drug demand, hold up drugs at the border, and break up the drug rings that spread poison on our streets. We should open more drug courts, to speed justice for drug-related crimes; double the number of drug hot-spots where we aggressively target our enforcement efforts; expand drug treatment for at-risk youth; make sure that all of our school zones are drug-free; and provide drug treatment upon demand. Source: 2000 Democratic National Platform as adopted by the DNC , Aug 15, 2000

Fight drugs and economic hopelessness that fuels it

Our nation is afflicted with drugs. We must continue to combat traffickers. We must have a Drug Czar. We must work with our allies to fight the blood money of the drug trade. We must remember that the drug trade reflects the economics of hopelessness. Farmers have been drawn to cultivate these crops as a means for economic survival. The Democratic Party understands that no policy of prosecution will succeed unless it is combined with robust investment in alternative ways to make a living. Source: 2000 Democratic National Platform as adopted by the DNC , Aug 15, 2000

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Page last updated: Feb 24, 2022