In order to deal with the problem of illegal drugs in this country, efforts must be focused on keeping drugs out of the country and our communities, as well as reducing demand for illegal drugs.
John Kerry supports aggressively targeting traffickers and dealers, as well as making a commitment to sufficiently fund drug prevention and treatment programs.
Source: Campaign website, JohnKerry.com, "Issues"
Mar 21, 2004
Admits having smoked marijuana
At the "Rock the Vote" debate, the moderator inevitably asked,. "Which of you are ready to admit to having used marijuana in the past?"
"Yes," said John Kerry, leading off. "Yes," said John Edwards . "Yes," said Howard Dean.
None of these three baby-boomer candidates said anything beyond their short, declarative affirmations. None followed with a hurried explanation that it was just a few times, that it was some kind of "youthful indiscretion," or that he didn't inhale.
The implication of their answers seemed to be, "Yeah, so what?"
In fact, the defensive answers tended to come from those replying in the negative. "No," said Dennis Kucinich. "But I think it ought to be decriminalized."
"I grew up in the church,"
said Al Sharpton. "We didn't believe in that."
"I have a reputation for giving unpopular answers," said Joe Lieberman. "I never used marijuana. Sorry!"
In the next day's news coverage, the admissions of marijuana smoking were largely ignored.
Source: Steven Holmes, NY Times
Nov 9, 2003
Colombia is entirely criminalized by drug cartels
Criminalization of an entire country is still only a threat in Russia and China; in Colombia, home of the world's most powerful global criminals, it is a daily reality.
Drugs have made Colombia rich; the nation is awash in profits earned by the export
of cocaine to the US and the rest of the world. But the country has been all but stolen from its people, virtually taken over by the drug cartels.
Many legitimate businesses have been pushed out of the economy; businesspeople cannot always afford to
care about whether their cash flow--or their financial backing--is dirty or clean. Legitimate agriculture has been pressured too; coffee is less attractive to grow when coca is so much more profitable. A willing army of young Colombians enlist with
the cartels, dreaming of easy money, while some young Colombians join the police, army, and customs department just to make money by cooperating with drug criminals.
Voted NO on increasing penalties for drug offenses.
Vote to increase penalties on certain drug-related crimes. The amendment would specifically target the manufacturing or trafficking of amphetamines & methamphetamines and possession of powder cocaine, and set stronger penalties for dealing drugs
Reference:
Bill S.625
; vote number 1999-360
on Nov 10, 1999
Voted NO on spending international development funds on drug control.
Vote to add an additional $53 million (raising the total to $213 million) to international narcotics control funding, and pay for it by taking $25 million from international operations funding and $28 million from development assistance.
Reference:
Bill HR 3540
; vote number 1996-244
on Jul 25, 1996
Require chemical resellers to certify against meth use.
Kerry co-sponsored requiring chemical resellers to certify against meth use
Sen. FEINSTEIN: This act is designed to address problems that the Drug Enforcement Administration, DEA, has identified in the implementation of the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005. The bill that I introduce today would:
clarify that all retailers, including mail order retailers, who sell products that contain chemicals often used to make methamphetamine--like ephedrine, pseudoepedrine and phenylpropanolamine--must self-certify that they have trained their personnel and will comply with the Combat Meth Act's requirements;
require distributors to sell these products only to retailers who have certified that they will comply with the law;
require the DEA to publish the list of all retailers who have filed self-certifications, on the DEA's website;
and clarify that any retailer who negligently fails to file self-certification as required, may be subject to civil fines and penalties.
The Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act that we passed last year has been a resounding success. The number of methamphetamine labs in the United States has declined dramatically now that the ingredients used to make methamphetamine are harder to get. Fewer meth labs means more than just less illegal drug production. In 2003, 3,663 children were reported exposed to toxic meth labs nationwide--but so far this year, the number of exposed children is only 319.
This is a common-sense bill, designed to strengthen the implementation of the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act. This bill would create incentives to ensure that the self-certification process of the law is made both effective and enforceable. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
