Mike Pence, the governor of Indiana, is the worst-case scenario candidate for ending the War on Drugs and decriminalizing soft drugs and addiction. With President Obama singlehandedly righting the wrongs of our criminal justice system by attempting to repeal the last 30 years of drug war policies, a Trump/Pence ticket, if elected, can spell doom for the progress we’ve made in the last couple of years. Pence is not only a certified drug warrior, he’s also a cigarette truther who’s been a long-time supporter of Big Tobacco.
As society has softened our approach toward drugs, especially marijuana, and recognized that the stigmas associated with addicts make it difficult for them to recover, we’ve become much smarter on crime—moving away from the “lock them up and throw away the key” model, where any type of drug use unequivocally equaled crime. But if Trump and Pence get elected, we could head back down that same path. With some questioning if the recent police shootings are tied to the drug war, things can only get worse with the wrong guidance.
“Drug abuse problems are not unique to our state, but I’m determined to meet this challenge head-on,” Pence said in a press release in March when he signed into law an act to reinstate a 10-year mandatory minimum prison sentence for those convicted of dealing meth or heroin, or who has a prior conviction for dealing meth, heroin, or cocaine. “We need to make it clear that Indiana will not tolerate the actions of criminals, and I’m pleased to sign into law HEA 1235 to increase penalties on drug dealers,” the governor said.
If elected, Trump and Pence could take us back to the dark ages of the drug war, a time period in our country that people want to put in the rearview mirror. The staunch conservative has also demonstrated that he doesn’t hold any liberal or progressive views on any front either—he was instrumental in signing one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the United States, he promotes discrimination towards the LGBT community, and he refused to let Syrian refugees settle in Indiana.
The “Make America Great Again” ticket seems like more of the same for a country that’s fed up with politicians out for self-gain, and the agenda of the corporations that are funding their election campaigns. Not to label Pence as such, but his record is undeniable and if he gets into the White House, the tragedies of the drug war, that we thought were over, will rear their ugly head again.
