Asa Hutchinson: “Today I rise to address a matter of the greatest public concern. Illegal drug abuse is soaring in our country, and it is…”

“Today I rise to address a matter of the greatest public concern. Illegal drug abuse is soaring in our country, and it is the most serious social problem that faces our communities, our families, and our children. We hear this from every side. It is our children themselves who are telling us this. Thirty-five percent of teenagers ages 13 through 17 identified drugs as their most serious concern. Our law enforcement agents are telling us this as well. Thirty-one percent of the Nation's police chiefs believe that the best way to reduce violent crime is to reduce drug abuse. Drug-related activities have been identified as being at the core of the violent crimes, the property crimes, and, yes, domestic abuse which afflict our communities. During the 1980's our Nation declared a war against drugs. I was in that battle as a Federal prosecutor. It was during that time that our families, our communities, and our law enforcement officials mobilized in a united effort to fight this war. Because of this national crusade, teenage drug abuse declined from 1985 to 1992. Then what happened? It was then that our national commitment against this war of drugs waned. It was then that teenage drug use again started to increase, and we saw that teenage experimentation with drugs was on the incline. Today it is my belief that we need to renew our national commitment to saving our children, to restoring the vibrancy of our inner cities, and strengthening our families.”