Candidate Series

Newt Gingrich: His anti-media plan

Using debate moments to propel his presidential election campaign.

Drug Policy

Drugs like cocaine and morphine were once available in over-the-counter medicines and tonics often in mixtures with alcohol.  Federal regulation beginning early in the 20th century quickly led to prohibition of most uses of opiates and hard drugs followed by the criminalization of marijuana in 1937 and hallucinogenic drugs like LSD in the 1960s.  The United States also joined international treaties, and during the administration of President Richard Nixon, launched the so-called War on Drugs which continues today combining demand reduction through education and prosecution with supply reduction through police action.  There is, however, a movement favoring drug decriminalization or legalization citing budgetary and social costs and advocating treating drug addiction as a medical rather than a criminal problem.  The platform of the Libertarian Party favors the repeal of drug laws as a matter of personal privacy. Complicating the debate and challenging federal authority is the growing availability of medical marijuana now made legal in some states and available by prescription.