Drug Policy

Donald Trump

Trump's Drug Policy (section page):

Trump has stated he does not drink, smoke, or use drugs.(DTI)

Marijuana

• Opposed marijuana legalization (DTS)
• In favor of medical marijuana (DTS)
• Believes in states' rights to decide whether to have marijuana or not (DTS)

Bernie Sanders

Bernie's Drug Policy (section page)

"It means that we have to rethink the so-called war on drugs which has destroyed the lives of millions of people, which is why I have taken marijuana out of the Controlled Substance Act. So that it will not be a federal crime." - Bernie Sanders (DD3)

"I find it very strange that a major financial institution that pays $5 billion in fines for breaking the law, not one of their executives is prosecuted, while kids who smoke marijuana get a jail sentence." - Bernie Sanders (DD4)

"There is a responsibility on the part of the pharmaceutical industry and the drug companies who are producing all of these drugs and not looking at the consequence of it." -Bernie Sanders (DD4)

Bernie believes that the war on drugs has failed and instead of pursuing a path of punishment America should try to treat drug addiction. He supports medical marijuana and decriminalization of recreational marijuana. He believes that states should have the right to vote on full legalization. For hard drugs Bernie supports increased education and rehabilitation. (OTIBSD)

He also wants drug companies to take responsibility for the outcomes and uses of the drugs they bring to market, specifically opioids. (DD4)

Chris Christie

Christie | Drug Policy | (section page)

Focus on Treatment First with Expansion of Drug Courts:

Governor Christie has championed the use of drug courts in the state of New Jersey, which allow first time, non-violent offenders, the opportunity to get the treatment they need rather than serving jail time. The Governor expanded mandatory drug court for first time non-violent drug offenders across the state, and is calling for the expansion drug courts to every state.

• The rate at which drug court graduates are re-arrested for new offenses is 16% and the reconviction rate is 8%. This is compared to re-arrest rates for drug offenders released from prison, which stand at 54% with a re-conviction rate of 43%.
• An average institutional cost per inmate is approximately $38,900, whereas the cost for an active drug court participant is roughly $11,379.

Governor Christie also called for ending the current dysfunctional, ad-hoc approach for implementing drug courts being used on the federal level.

• As President, Christie would make drug court mandatory in all 94 federal districts. He will implement a system to review and analyze outcomes of the various drug court models and institute best practices guidance for federal judges and prosecutors.

(CCWJR)

Simplified Quotes

• Allow private sector to offer drug treatment programs. (Nov 2015)
• Treatment, not jail, for drug addicts; it's a disease. (Nov 2015)
• I support medical not recreational marijuana. (Sep 2015)
• Mandatory drug treatment, not jail, for first time dealers. (Sep 2015)
• Drug addiction is a disease: treatment instead of jail. (Apr 2015)
• Drug addiction is a disease & it can be treated. (Jan 2015)
• Drug courts: mandate treatment, not imprisonment. (Jan 2014)

(OTI:Drugs) Full quotes available on source.

Rand Paul

Paul's Drug Policy (section page)

Advocate of more rehabilitation and less incarceration

• Apply the 10th Amendment to allow states to make marijuana legal
• Bans on marijuana discriminate against lower income levels
• Higher levels of incarceration exist among poor children than wealthy children
• In addition to ending the over-criminalization of marijuana, Paul has risen awareness of another important issue among drug-related incarcerations - the unintentional racial outcome of the war on drugs
  • "Even though whites used drugs at the same rate as black kids, the prisons are full of black kids and brown kids. There are Republicans trying to correct this injustice." (OTI - DP)

Paul believes we should:

• Legalize medical marijuana
• Exclude industrial hemp from definition of marijuana
• Exempt industrial hemp from marijuana laws
• Support community treatment rather than federal anti-drug programs
• Deal with drug abuse on the state level (not a federally pressing issue)

(OTI - DP)