House and Senate democrats discuss drug policy
Yesterday a Joint Economic Committee meeting was held by the House and Senate, called by Virginia Senator Jim Webb, to discuss the efficacy of our country's failed drug laws. There was testimony by prosecutors and legal scholars that the current emphasis on incarceration rather than treatment has proven to be costly and ineffective.
Senator Webb and the witnesses at the hearing say that despite record numbers of arrests and incarceration of drug offenders, there has been no reduction in the availability and use of drugs. "Despite the number of people we have arrested, the illegal drug industry and the flow of drugs to our citizens remain undiminished," Webb said. Also at the hearing, Rep. Robert C. "Bobby" Scott "said prevention programs such as prenatal care, early-childhood education, summer jobs and access to college would prove more cost effective than spending $65 billion a year to lock people up, as the United States does today."
According to the article, Senator Webb acknowledges that the subject matter is "politically perilous," and advocating for less prison sentences will be seen as being "soft on crime." Senator Webb said that there is no pending legislation, he just wants to get the facts out. No republicans showed up for the meeting, and there was not much media coverage of the event, as noted at Sentencing Law and Policy.
That is the main barrier to fixing the drug laws - no politician wants to be seen as "soft on crime." But it is encouraging at least to see some who are talking about it, and putting it into the public's view. The beginning of making changes in the current policy is to educate the public on the facts of the "drug war," addiction, and the ineffectiveness of current policies.
When the will of the people is to stop incarcerating America, politicians will change the laws to reflect treatment and prevention rather than incarceration for non-violent offenders. There needs to be public debate, and more people in positions of authority like Senator Webb need to speak up if there is going to be any change in our collective will as a nation.
