“Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said there has been “an unprecedented surge in violence along the 1,951-mile U.S.-Mexico border this year, with 892 border agents assaulted between October and July in fiscal 2008 – a stark increase when compared to the 638 assaults during the first 10 months of fiscal 2006. Some agents say the Border Patrol alone will be unable to handle the violence that is likely to be coming over the border in the next few years snf that it may be necessary for the U.S. military to play a role in tackling the problem,” according to the Washington Times.
Why aren’t Barack Obama and John McCain talking about this war on our Southern border? The drug war is threatening to destroy American lives – and Mexico has so far been unable to manage this disaster.
And check out this additional excerpt from the Washington Times, “But it should be noted that last year, both Mr. McCain and Mr. Obama voted against an amendment by offered by Sen. John Cornyn, Texas Republican, to the Senate immigration bill that would have permanently barred gang members, terrorists, sex offenders and illegal aliens convicted of at least three DUIs from the United States. In a very real sense, Americans who want the border secured to prevent criminal aliens from coming in do not have a candidate with a serious chance of winning the presidency this year.”
It is, to me, reasonable to ban criminals from entering our country. As my readers know, I am not against immigration. However we ought to do whatever we can to prevent entry to gang members and others who would have been banned by the Cornyn bill. Why would Obama not support this measure?
And why isn’t McCain talking about the drug war? Instead he had a lot of tough words for the Russians during the RNC. Just what we don’t need in the White House – a hothead who wants to get into a war with Russia!
Ultimately we need a new drug policy in this country – American drug use is destroying Mexico and having an awful effect on our country too. Did you know that the meth capital of the U.S. is now Missouri? We are failing to keep our kids off drugs – and our prisons are overflowing with convicts involved with drugs. But Obama and McCain are ignoring this mess altogether. Why is that?
We legalized medicinal use of marijuana here in California and the Bush administration had done nothing but attack this policy. Hopefully the next President won’t be in the same mold as Bush.
The failure of this Administration to secure our borders following 2001 is nearly as big a problem as their failure to secure our ports, nuclear facilities and chemical factories. The money requirements of the invasion of Iraq wouldn’t allow the dollars needed to secure them. Enforcing existing laws wouldn’t have required a changed immigration policy only enforcing the laws on the books. It still doesn’t.
These absolute, discretion eliminating, rules like the one you cite about criminal records tie the hands of our government and should not be put in place. Of course the common sense you cite at not allowing criminals will prevail but should be the guideline so that any sanctuary cases do not need an act of congress (literally) to be allowed.
p.s. They make meth here I hear. Do we import it also?
Nuke it.
I was reading “Why our Drug Law Have Failed and What We Can Do About It” by OC Judge Jim Gray and he said that if the trends of the last 20 years in California continue the way they have been going; by 2025 virtually everyone in California will either be a prisoner or running a prison.
I have never done and drugs and I never plan on it.
That being said we need to legalize Marijuana.
Like Art said, we are not keeping our kids off drugs, drugs are no harder to find if they were legal and they are no less pure or expensive because of the Drug War.
Judge Gray makes the argument that politicians only support the Drug War not because it is winnable but because it is fundable.
What a sad state for our Country.
“Why aren’t Obama and McCain talking about the drug war”?
Because this is a Presidential Election…the American people can wrap their arms around 2, maybe 3 major issue at a time. This time around, it’s the economy, the Iraq war, and energy policy.
Does that answer your question?
Why does every politician ignore the drug war? It’s because of the way the argument is framed. For Obama, those against the drug war are nearly always marginalized as being pro-drug, which is much different than anti-drug war.
It’s also because on the flip side for McCain, many citizens are beginning to realize that drug criminalization is really just a way to stigmatize use of illicit substances while simultaneously creating a de facto tax on them.
To be too zealous about the so-called drug war makes one look like an opportunist.
It will be interesting to see what each candidate gets asked this question first at the debates and how he’ll answer. Either candidate would be wise to advocate the use of ‘drug courts’ that stress recovery over incarceration to help move users out of the system permanently. Other than that, there is really no politically safe statement either gentleman can make.
My message to them? Stake out the center boys; I’ll be waiting.
SMS
We should at the very least be legalizing/decriminalizing marijuana. Prohibition doesn’t work. It’s been tried with alcohol, which BTW one could argue is a far more dangerous drug than marijuana. Why is it my business or the government’s business what someone puts into their own body?