Ronald Reagan's Drug Policy

Introduction

Ronald Reagan, 40th president of the United States of America, will always be remembered for his dedication to moral obligations and his distinct policy making style. In addition to having been a decorated thespian, Reagan was a politician with a strong commitment to conservative values. He inherited the white house at a tumultous time; the Cold War was at a new peak and the United States was facing a new evil – drugs. Reagan took a full, hardline stance against the drug problem in America. However, considering currently escalating crime and drug prevelance rates, did he ultimately have a positive impact on the drug situation in America?

Ronald Reagan’s policy making style

Reagan assumed office at a time of diminished
The first of these was the Mandatory Minimum Drug Sentences4 policy of 1986. This would be the first time that mandatory sentencing would be passed by congress after the Boggs Act of 19515. By November 18th 1988, the Anti Drug Abuse Act6 too would be passed, establishing the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). The ONDCP is headed by reputable ‘drug czars’ who stand as faces of the anti-drug movement.

Reagan considerably was, up till this point, the most staunchly anti-narcotic president and remained true to his cause until the end of his second term. However, Nixon, for example, only relegated his hardline stance because according to statistics, the soft, educational approach to the drug situation proved more effective than enforcement. Reagan, on the other hand, committed unwaveringly and, quite possibly, at great cost.

Was Reagan’s impact on America’s ‘war on drugs’ positive or
The increments in sentencing strictness meant that people had less of an incentive to risk abusing drugs. However, the decrease in cocaine abuse rates did not lead to a decrease in overall drug abuse. The nature of drug enforcement and drug policing meant that cocaine abusers were being targetting because the sentencing for those crimes were the harshest. In other words, drug enforcement officals had greater incentive to target cocaine dealers or abusers as opposed to abusers or manufacturers of drugs such as methamphetamine. As such, methamphetamine abuse rates rose, nullifying the decrements in cocaine abuse rates.

Crystal meth, or methamphetamine, is relatively easy to produce and at the time, became drug of choice for the poor who were turned off of cocaine8. The effects of crystal meth, however, are far detrimental than that of cocaine. Therefore, while Reagan’s targeted drug did diminish in popularity, he had, unwittingly, worsened the drug situation in