State of Maine secondary Archives: on Drugs

Paul LePage: We are losing War on Drugs; more enforcement & prosecution

We must confront a troubling epidemic. It is tearing at the social fabric of our communities. We are losing the war on drugs.

Over 20% of the homicides in 2012 were related to illegal drugs. We must address the problem of drug addiction and drug trafficking. We must act now.

We need to fully fund the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency. Our police chiefs tell us local law enforcement officials need more resources to fight the drug problem in our state.

My proposal adds four new special drug prosecutors and four new judges to sit in enhanced drug courts in Presque Isle, Bangor, Lewiston and Portland. Since local agencies do not have the manpower or resources they need to fight Maine's drug problem, we will add 14 MDEA agent positions.

We must hunt down dealers and get them off the streets. We must protect our citizens from drug-related crimes and violence.

Source: 2014 State of the State speech to Me. legislature Feb 4, 2014

Zak Ringelstein: Fighting Opioid epidemic begins with pharmaceutical reform

Fighting the opioid epidemic requires a joint emergency response on the local, state and national levels of government that starts with getting pharmaceutical companies out of Washington. We need to solve the underlying economic, education, and social problems that are causing people to use opioids. Individuals and families affected need wrap-around support from health care services, mental health providers, faith centers, and other community groups. Source: 2018 Me. Senate campaign website, RingelsteinForMaine.com Jun 26, 2018

The above quotations are from State of Maine Politicians: secondary Archives. Click here for definitions & background information on Drugs. Click here for other issues (main summary page).
*2024 Presidential contenders on Drugs:*
	*Candidates for President & Vice-President:* V.P.Kamala Harris (D-CA) Robert F. Kennedy Jr.(I-CA) Chase Oliver(L-GA) Dr.Jill Stein(D-MA) Former Pres.Donald Trump(R-FL) Sen.J.D.Vance(R-OH) Gov.Tim Walz(D-MN) Dr.Cornel West(I-NJ)	*2024 presidential primary contenders:* Pres.Joe_Biden(D-DE) N.D.Gov.Doug Burgum(R) N.J.Gov.Chris_Christie(R) Fla.Gov.Ron_DeSantis(R) S.C.Gov.Nikki_Haley(R) Ark.Gov.Asa_Hutchinson(R) Former V.P.Mike Pence(R-IN) U.S.Rep.Dean_Phillips(D-MN) Vivek_Ramaswamy(R-OH) S.C.Sen.Tim_Scott(R)
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Page last updated: Feb 06, 2026