Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I think anybody that has any knowledge at all recognizes drug abuse is the most dangerous threat that we have in our country today. We spend nearly $11 billion inside the country to fight this drug disaster. Aid to Colombia is the most effective weapon we have against drug production, not drug use. The estimated economic cost of illegal drug use in the United States has been over $160 billion in the year 2000. The $731 million provided in the Andean Drug Initiative in this appropriations bill is necessary and money well spent and these funds will save the U.S. money in the long term. If you could measure the cost per individual what drugs have cost us in this country, it is $34,200 a year. The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that 1.6 million people were arrested in the United States in 2001 for drug abuse violations. I think the statement that the war on drugs and Plan Colombia is not working is completely false.”