[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 148 (Wednesday, October 29, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2111-E2114]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E2111]]



                     FIGHTING THE SCOURGE OF DRUGS

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. NEWT GINGRICH

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, October 29, 1997

  Mr. GINGRICH. Mr. Speaker, I want to encourage my colleagues to read 
the following speech by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. Mayor Giuliani's 
statement is an excellent example of how our country's leaders need to 
be bold and aggressive in fighting the scourge of drugs. We have lost 
too many battles due to the apathy of leaders loaded with excuses. It 
is time to engage the enemy. It is time to win the war:

           Removing Drugs From Our Neighborhoods and Schools

                     (By Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani)

       As we move toward the new millennium, we as New Yorkers can 
     take pride in the fact that our great City has regained its 
     true stature as the Capital of the World. Our crime rate is 
     at levels not witnessed since the 1960s, tourism in the City 
     is at historic levels and our streets and parks are the 
     cleanest in recent memory.
       Four years ago, few would have dreamed, much less believed 
     that these strides were possible. In fact, New York City, 
     like other American cities, was essentially written off as a 
     symbol of urban decay. Yet we have proven the cynics wrong 
     and shown what is possible. We did it by refusing to accept 
     the notion that had pervaded City government for far too 
     long--one of resignation and acceptance of the social and 
     political problems that faced them. We saw these same 
     problems as a challenge to our creativity, our courage and 
     our intelligence--challenges to do better and improve the 
     situation for all New Yorkers.
       We recognized that the role of government is to allow its 
     citizens to live productive, accountable lives so that they 
     can realize the promise of independence and the satisfaction 
     of living in a democratic society. Just a few days ago I 
     spoke at the John F. Kennedy School of Government and 
     explained how the use of principles of accountability have 
     made it possible for us to reduce crime, reform welfare, 
     restore jobs and improve schools.
       We must now use that same philosophy, creativity and 
     commitment to confront our biggest problem today, namely, 
     drug abuse.
       Removing drugs from our neighborhoods and our schools may 
     sound like an unreachable and perhaps unrealistic goal--but 
     many said the same thing about the goals we set for ourselves 
     four years ago in the areas of crime, welfare, jobs and 
     education to name a few--and we proved them wrong.
       The fact is that we cannot turn our back on this ever 
     growing problem and we must resolve to challenge ourselves to 
     address it. Without such a resolve we will only continue to 
     bear the burdens of drugs, their attendant violence, their 
     enormous cost to society and the lost and wasted lives.


                        Facts of Substance Abuse

       Substance abuse affects literally every aspect of our 
     lives--it detracts from our quality of life, our economy, our 
     children's education, our very well being.
       70% to 80% of those arrested in New York City each year 
     test positive for drug use.
       60% of the cocaine and heroin consumed by the entire nation 
     each year is consumed by individuals arrested in that same 
     year.
       Substance abuse and addiction costs New York City more than 
     $20 billion every year, with $21 out of every $100 in taxes 
     paid to New York City subsidizing the consequences of 
     substance abuse and addiction problems.
       Over 70% of our nation's prison population are substance 
     abusers.
       60% to 70% of substance abusing parolees who do not receive 
     treatment while on parole return to drugs and criminal 
     conduct within three months of their release.
       At least 30,000 or 71% of children in foster care in our 
     City alone have at least one parent who was a substance 
     abuser.


                    Five Point National Drug Program

       Our drug problem requires the commitment of every level of 
     government and needs to be approached with the recognition it 
     is a global matter. Some of our drug program originates 
     abroad. Production of cocaine and heroin occurs beyond our 
     borders, but the international criminal industry which 
     organizes and markets it thrives, as with any business, on 
     the simple economic principles of supply and demand.
       For nearly twenty years, I have advocated for a five point 
     national program aimed at our drug problem--five points which 
     now serve as the essential elements of the 1997 National Drug 
     Control Strategy.
       First, the drug problem must be an integral part of our 
     nation's foreign policy. In dealing with countries which are 
     the origin for heroin and cocaine--primarily Peru, Columbia 
     and Bolivia--we must use our persuasive abilities, power and 
     foreign aid to convince those governments to cooperate with 
     us fully in stopping these disastrous crops and trade.
       Second, we must exercise more control over our nation's 
     borders. The Drug Enforcement Administration estimates that 
     70% of the illegal drugs reaching the United States travel 
     through Mexico with the majority of the remainder passing 
     through the Caribbean. In recent years, significant 
     reinforcements have been committed to the southwest border 
     and significant efforts have been undertaken to disrupt the 
     flow of drugs from the Caribbean. And I am heartened by the 
     significant resource commitment in the Federal Fiscal Year 
     1998 Appropriations Bill to continue and augment these 
     efforts.
       Third, domestically the general rule must be established 
     and it must be quickly learned in the streets that if you 
     sell drugs and are convicted you will go to prison. We must 
     make those who traffic in the destruction of human life 
     realize that in exchange for big profits, they are taking a 
     big risk.
       Fourth, we must put emphasis on enhancing present drug 
     treatment programs and improving those programs. Even if the 
     success rate is no better than 30 or 40%, that is better than 
     no success at all.
       Fifth, and most importantly, we must educate our young 
     people and our society about the dangers of drug abuse. In my 
     view, we educated our present generation of drug abusers. We 
     did it in the schools and on television, we did it in our 
     music and our movies, we did it in the role models we 
     presented to our young people, five, ten, fifteen and twenty 
     years ago, we did it by allowing families, community groups 
     and neighborhoods to deteriorate. If we in fact educated the 
     present generation of drug abusers, we can re-educate them 
     and educate the future generations to the realistic and 
     powerful dangers of drug use.


              New York City Initiative: ``Accountability''

       Understanding that the drug problem is one of international 
     dimensions, we in New York City are going to do what we can 
     to address our local problem with the expectation that by 
     removing drugs from our neighborhoods and our schools, we 
     will become a model for other cities, states and the entire 
     nation. Only then will we have fair claim to ask foreign 
     countries who supply drugs to the United States to limit 
     production of these disastrous crops.
       The underpinning of any comprehensive drug strategy is one 
     of accountability for government at all levels and for all 
     individuals. Law enforcement, treatment and prevention/
     education efforts are primarily the responsibility of local 
     government and it must be held accountable for major 
     improvements in these areas with State and Federal 
     governments assuring the provision of resources to support 
     these efforts. In addition, the Federal government must be 
     held accountable for its anti-drug efforts in the areas of 
     foreign policy and border interdiction.
       As government becomes more accountable in these areas, it 
     can demand that individuals become more accountable. Those 
     who choose to take drugs and burden their friends, families 
     and society with their addiction must be held responsible to 
     seek available treatment services. And those who choose to 
     live off the misery of others by selling drugs must be 
     punished.
       With this underlying philosophy, our drug strategy has at 
     its core three essential elements: Law Enforcement/Criminal 
     Justice; Treatment; and Prevention/Education.

                  1. Law Enforcement/Criminal Justice

       Over the last several years, the New York City Police 
     Department has made dramatic strides in fighting drug 
     activity in all of our City's neighborhoods. Particular 
     emphasis has been placed on the two areas in our City which 
     are responsible for much of the City's drug related crime; 
     namely Brooklyn North and Northern Manhattan. In April 1996, 
     over 500 uniformed personnel were assigned to the Strategic 
     and Tactical Command (SATCOM) in Brooklyn North and one year 
     later we undertook a similar initiative in three precincts in 
     Northern Manhattan with the assignment of over 350 uniformed 
     officers to that area.
       In addition to murders being reduced by 60% in the first 
     six months of this year compared to the same period in 1993 
     and shootings and shooting incidents down by over 60% in that 
     same period, the Police Department's combined drug strategies 
     have had a tremendous impact on drug activity. Reversing the 
     previous Administration's policy of deterring uniformed 
     police officers from making drug arrests, the Police 
     Department in 1996 made an all-time high number of drug 
     arrests [101,051 arrests]--exceeding the previous record year 
     of 1989, the height of the Department's TNT program [94,887].
       In addition, the Police Department recorded a 51% increase 
     in drug seizures in 1996 when compared to 1993 [17,377 lbs 
     vs. 11,475

[[Page E2112]]

     lbs] and a 116% increase in drug currency seizures in that 
     same period [$68,927,762 vs. $31,970,963].
       Building on these successes, our enhanced anti-drug law 
     enforcement efforts will focus on drug activity in our 
     neighborhoods and in and around our schools.

                             Neighborhoods

       Anti-drug initiatives in the South Bronx and Southeast 
     Queens.--The first law enforcement component will be the 
     implementation of two additional drug enforcement initiatives 
     modeled after the two already in operation. The new 
     initiatives will target neighborhoods in the South Bronx and 
     include 40th Precinct [Mott Haven], the 41st Precinct [Hunts 
     Point] and the 43rd Precinct [Soundview]; and neighborhoods 
     in Southeast Queens and include the 103rd Precinct [Jamaica] 
     and the 113th and 105th Precincts [South Jamaica]. These 
     initiatives will involve the assignment of over 1,000 
     uniformed personnel and, following training of half the 
     assigned personnel, will begin phased-in operation in the 
     first week of November. Full operation of both initiatives is 
     scheduled for the last week in December.
       As with its two current drug initiatives, the Department 
     anticipates that targeted drug enforcement in theses areas 
     will not only reduce crime in these precincts over the 
     reductions experienced to date, but also have a similar 
     impact throughout the City since these precincts are hubs 
     of drug activity for other areas in the City and the 
     adjacent suburbs.
       Accelerate hiring of 1,000 of the 1,600 police recruits 
     scheduled for the July 1998 class to December 1997.--In order 
     for these new drug initiatives to be fully staffed without 
     draining our current precinct resources, I have directed that 
     1,000 of the 1,600 police recruits currently scheduled for 
     the July 1998 class be hired and commence Police Academy 
     training in December 1997 following the graduation later this 
     Fall of over 1,300 recruits currently in the Academy. These 
     new officers and recruits will ensure that the Police 
     Department has the resources needed to maintain the historic 
     declines in crime we have enjoyed over the last three and a 
     half years.
       Implement Drug Free Zone in Washington Square Park by 
     targeting drug sellers on probation for dealing drugs in the 
     Park.--As part of this strategy, we will immediately make 
     Washington Square Park a drug free zone. Washington Square 
     Park should not be a symbol of freedom from accountability. 
     The Park has been plagued with repeat misdemeanor drug 
     sellers--one of these offenders had been arrested no less 
     than 75 times for misdemeanor drug selling in the park. 
     Because of lax State laws in dealing with repeat misdemeanor 
     drug sellers--laws I have sought to strengthen--these repeat 
     offenders face short jail terms and/or probationary 
     sentences. The Department of Probation and the District 
     Attorney's Office will urge judges who sentence these 
     offenders to probation to also place conditions on the 
     offender's probation requiring him or her to stay out of the 
     Park. If found in the park, the offender's probation will be 
     revoked and he or she will immediately be placed in jail.
       Implement Operation Night Light with NYPD and Department of 
     Probation targeting Substance Abusing Adult Probationers.--A 
     new initiative called Operation Night Light will also be 
     implemented by the Police and Probation Departments. This 
     initiative, modeled after a successful program in Boston 
     targeting juvenile probationers, involves the assignment of 
     21 probation officers to teams in police precincts which 
     target adult probationers with court imposed curfews to 
     ensure compliance, as well as probationers who have violated 
     conditions of their probation and/or have outstanding 
     warrants against them.
       Activate 1-888-374-DRUG hotline.--And, City residents will 
     be encouraged to help in our anti-drug efforts by reporting 
     drug activity in their neighborhoods to the Department's new 
     24 hours, seven day a week hotline, 1-888-374-DRUG.

                                Schools

       Critical to our anti-drug efforts is the need to focus on 
     our schools to ensure that our children are educated in a 
     drug-free environment so that they can learn, develop and 
     participate in all that New York City has to offer. To do 
     this, we must make our government, our schools and our 
     parents accountable for keeping our children off drugs. We 
     have already made significant strides in reducing drug 
     activity in our neighborhoods and our schools and we now are 
     in a position to expand our successful initiatives to 
     arrest and prosecute those who sell drugs to our children.
       Substantial Increase in Drug Free School Zones and Safe 
     Corridor Program.--Understanding the need to reinforce the 
     message that those who sell drugs to our City's youth will be 
     severely punished, the Department will increase by two and a 
     half times its current drug free schools zone program from 40 
     to 100 schools. Anyone caught selling drugs within 1,000 feet 
     of school grounds will be faced with enhanced felony 
     penalties.
       The Department will also double its Safe Corridor program 
     to involve 240 schools to provide youth with extra police 
     protection upon their arrival and release from school as they 
     walk from and to nearby bus and subway stops.
       Establish a curfew program for 1,000 drug offending 
     juvenile probationers using beeper and voice tracking 
     technology.--The Department of Probation will similarly begin 
     a program designed to target 1,000 juvenile probationers with 
     court-imposed curfews as a result of a drug offense. Using 
     state-of-the-art tracking and beeper technology, probation 
     officers will monitor the juveniles' activities and curfew 
     compliance on a 24 hour basis.
       Place Board of Education drug specialists in each Family 
     Court.--The Board of Education will also be given resources 
     to assign substance abuse specialists in each of the City's 
     Family Courts. These specialists will act as a liaison 
     between the juvenile justice system and the school system to 
     ensure that drug offending juveniles are appropriately placed 
     in services within the school-based program and/or referred 
     to appropriate community based services.

                              2. Treatment

       Given the fact that overwhelming numbers of persons 
     arrested and imprisoned each year have some form of substance 
     abuse problems and that those same individuals consumed over 
     60% of the nation's cocaine and heroin, it makes all the 
     sense in the world that we provide appropriate treatment 
     services in the criminal justice system. In fact, treatment 
     models already in place in the criminal justice system here 
     in New York City and in other jurisdictions have shown 
     promising results in reducing both drug dependency and 
     recidivism.
       50% increase in DOC substance abuse treatment beds and 
     implement pilot project to create linkages to community-based 
     programs for substance abusing inmates released from Rikers 
     Island.--To this end, the Department of Correction will be 
     given resources to increase by 50% the number of drug 
     treatment beds available in the Department's Substance Abuse 
     Intervention Division--from 1058 to 1558 beds. And, the 
     Department will implement a pilot program to contract with 
     community based residential treatment services to provide 
     services for substance abusing inmates released from Rikers 
     Island after successfully completing treatment in jail. 
     Studies have documented that post-release services to 
     substance abusing inmates are critical to avoiding 
     recidivist behavior.
       Expand Probation residential and out-patient drug treatment 
     programs for substance abusing probationers.--The Department 
     of Probation will double its current residential drug 
     treatment capacity to serve 360 probationers annually--up 
     from 180. And its out-patient drug treatment capacity will be 
     increased from 890 to 965. These programs have impressive 
     success rates with participating probationers successfully 
     completing the terms of their probation sentence at a 35% 
     higher rate than probationers who did not take part in drug 
     treatment programs.
       Implement Manhattan Drug Court for 300 drug abusing 
     defendants.--Later this Fall, the City, working in 
     cooperation with the court system and the Special Narcotics 
     Prosecutor, will be opening a Drug Court in Manhattan to 
     complement the Drug Court currently operating in Brooklyn. 
     Participating defendants agree to take part in an intensive 
     18 month drug treatment program in exchange for reduced 
     criminal charges, and are monitored daily by case management 
     court staff who provide regular reports to the judge. The 
     court is expected to target 300 non-violent drug abusing 
     defendants annually. An independent study of the Dade County 
     Drug Court reported that only 3% of the participating 
     defendants were re-arrested within one year of their 
     completion of the program--an impressive record when one 
     considers that over 30% of similarly situated defendants were 
     re-arrested in that same period.
       The City will pursue additional Federal funds to allow for 
     Drug Courts to be opened in the Bronx, Queens and Staten 
     Island. And, I applaud Chief Judge Judith Kaye's commitment 
     to open a Drug Court in Manhattan Family Court next month and 
     encourage the opening of similarly programs in the City's 
     other four Family Courts.
       Establish Drug Treatment Coordinator Unit--a citywide 
     database on treatment programs and an 800 number for 
     information on available services.--The prevailing wisdom 
     among the drug policy experts in that less than 25% of 
     substance abusers ever seek treatment--in fact, contrary to 
     popular opinion the State and City funded drug treatment 
     slots in the City do not have waiting lists of persons 
     seeking treatment. As a January 1997 snapshot of these 
     residential and outpatient programs drug treatment programs 
     in the City demonstrated, less than 95% of the available 
     treatment resources were being utilized. Substance abusers 
     must and will be held accountable for seeking treatment or 
     face the consequences of their actions. Unless abusers seek 
     treatment, they will run the risk of being arrested. 
     Regardless of who you are, where you live, and there you 
     work, if you're a substance abuser, seek treatment now or run 
     the risk of going to jail. The choice is yours.
       In order to ensure that those seeking treatment have the 
     information regarding available programs in or near their 
     communities. I am creating a Drug Treatment Coordinator unit 
     within the Mayor's office with the responsibility of 
     developing an on-line database of all available drug 
     treatment services in the City. The system will be designed 
     to track on a daily basis the capacity of the programs and 
     allow the unit to make referrals to appropriate programs. 
     A 1-800 number will also be established to this unit so 
     that substance abusers can access this information at any 
     time.
       Implement a Joint Program with ACS and HHC to provide Drug 
     Treatment Services for

[[Page E2113]]

     Mothers with Children in Foster Care.--Recognizing that 71% 
     of the children in foster care have at least one biological 
     parent who is a substance abuser, the Administration for 
     Children Services (ACS) will team up with the Health and 
     Hospitals Corporation (HHC) to implement a program designed 
     to offer substance abuse treatment services to mothers whose 
     children have been placed in foster care. ACS expects to 
     motivate them to participate in treatment services which will 
     be provided by HHC. The progress which these mothers make in 
     treatment will be made known to the Family Court on a regular 
     basis.
       Report of Recommendations for Expansion of Existing and/or 
     Creation of new Treatment Programs.--I have also directed my 
     Special Health Advisor, Dr. Rosa Gil, and my Commissioner of 
     the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and 
     Alcoholism Services, Dr. Neil Cohen, to undertake an 
     extensive review of the various drug treatment programs 
     throughout the City, whether funded with City, State or 
     private dollars, and to report back to me within 45 days with 
     recommendations for expansion of exiting programs and the 
     development of new and creative approaches to substance 
     abuse. I am particularly interested in treatment models which 
     have proven results in ending drug and substance dependency. 
     Viable treatment programs should instill in its participants 
     the principle of personal accountability and give them the 
     skills and tools they need to become productive and self-
     reliant individuals, rather than continuing them on a 
     dependency.

                        3. Prevention/Education

       The most important aspect of a successful anti-drug 
     strategy is prevention and education efforts aimed primarily 
     at our youth.
       A recent study indicated that if a young person is 
     successful in avoiding drug use by the time they reach the 
     age of sixteen, he or she will more than likely avoid the 
     dangers of substance abuse in the rest of his or her life. We 
     must seize upon this promising data and resolve to 
     continually reinforce for our children, in school, at home, 
     in society as a whole that drug use is dangerous and deadly.
       DARE Program.--Last year, the New York City Policy 
     Department and the Board of Education launched the nationally 
     acclaimed DARE program in our city's public school system. 
     Over 100 specially trained police officers teach kindergarten 
     through 6th graders about the dangers of drugs use as well as 
     build the students' self esteem so they are capable of 
     resisting peer pressure to engage in drug use. We will be 
     providing extra resources to the DARE program to augment the 
     program activities.
       Expand DARE and GREAT program to after-school hours.--
     The Department will also be given the resources necessary 
     to expand the DARE program to after-school hours and 
     couple it with the Gang Resistance Education Assistance 
     Treatment or GREAT Program. Both these programs foster 
     greater understanding among youth as to the dangers of 
     drugs and gang activity while at the same time providing 
     structured activities between young and police officers.
       Expand BEACON schools by 24% from 41 to 51 schools and 
     provide funding to expand mentoring programs.--I have also 
     directed that the number of BEACON schools operating 
     throughout the City to provide after-school and evening 
     activities for youth and community residents be expanded by 
     10 from 41 to 51 schools--a 24% increase. Statistics 
     demonstrate that youth who participate in BEACON school 
     programs have higher reading and math scores than their 
     peers.
       And funds will be allocated to expand successful mentoring 
     programs for our City's youth so as to expose them to 
     positive role models and encourage their development in 
     successful careers. Mentoring programs, such as Big Brothers/
     Big Sisters, have positive results--one study reporting that 
     mentored youth are 46% less likely to become involved in drug 
     use than other youth.
       Implement Drug Prevention Youth Initiative in Public 
     Housing and Establish an Anti-Drug Parent Network Program.--
     Modeled after its new Partner in Reading program, the Housing 
     Authority, working with my office, will implement an after-
     school drug prevention program aimed at youth in our City's 
     public housing developments. The program will work in 
     conjunction with the Authority's current youth mentoring 
     programs and will be designed to engage the youth in 
     structured activities and events on bi-weekly basis to make 
     them aware of the dangers of drugs and how to avoid drug use.
       Working with the Board of Education and the Parent 
     Associations in each of the public schools, we will also 
     undertake an effort to implement an Anti-Drug Parent Network 
     Program. The program will be designed to make parents aware 
     of the dangers of drugs, available drug counseling services 
     in their neighborhoods and the tell-tale signs of drug use in 
     their children. The program will facilitate the distribution 
     of drug information pamphlets to parents of school aged 
     children, sponsor anti-drug forums and fairs, and improve the 
     coordination of drug counseling and treatment services 
     available through the public schools.
       Sponsor a Citywide Clergy Anti-Drug Forum in the next three 
     months.--Within the next three months, my office will sponsor 
     a Clergy Anti-Drug Abuse Forum. The forum will bring together 
     leading members of our City's diverse religious communities 
     to focus on and discuss the City's drug problem. A strategic 
     action plan will be developed of initiatives which the City's 
     clergy can implement to enhance and expand on the City's 
     anti-drug agenda.
       Pro Bono Multi-Media Anti-Drug Campaign.--I am proud to 
     announce that McCann Erickson, one of our major 
     advertising agencies, has agreed to provide pro bono 
     services to develop and implement a multi-level anti-drug 
     media campaign with the goal of deterring drug use.
       Engage businesses in anti-drug program.--I challenge all of 
     the City's small, medium, and large businesses to similarly 
     pledge their resources to this effort and, to this end, we 
     will reach out to our business community to encourage it to 
     develop programs and provide resources to encourage our 
     City's youth to avoid drugs--whether it be in the form of 
     free movie passes to youth who participate in after drug 
     prevention school programs, or the sponsoring of little 
     league baseball, basketball or soccer leagues--all intended 
     to engage our City's youth in productive and safe activities.
       Develop Standards for Measuring the Drug Program's 
     Impact.--These are a few of the many initiatives which I am 
     committed to implement in the coming months, with the full 
     understanding that as with our crime-fighting strategies it 
     will require continuous monitoring and relentless follow-up 
     so that we can be sure that what we are doing is working and 
     to determine what more needs to be done. We need to apply the 
     same management strategy in place in the Police Department 
     for assessing, tracking and monitoring our City's crime rate, 
     to our drug program. To this end, a monitoring/research unit 
     will be created in my office and charged with the 
     responsibility of developing appropriate measurements for how 
     best to measure our success and to apply those measurements 
     against our progress.

                         State Anti-Drug Agenda

       Pursue State legislation to increase punishment for repeat 
     drug misdemeanors; to toughen driving requirements for young 
     adults; to create a rebutable presumption of neglect when 
     infants are born with a ``positive tox''; and to provide for 
     civil commitment of repeat violent substance abusers.--On the 
     State level, I will continue to pursue tougher laws dealing 
     with repeat misdemeanor drug offenders--requiring those who 
     engage in their third or more misdemeanor drug sale to 
     automatically face felony charges. And I will continue to 
     support legislation to prevent teenagers who are found to 
     have operated a motor vehicle while under the influence of 
     alcohol or drugs from obtaining a driver's license until the 
     age of 18--as well as long needed legislation for a rebutable 
     presumption of parental neglect in cases in which babies are 
     born with a ``positive tox''; and authorization for long term 
     civil commitment of persons with known substance abuse 
     problems that result in violent behavior.
       Expand drug treatment in State prisons and for parolees and 
     provide increased resources for drug treatment programs in 
     New York City.--I have also consulted with Governor Pataki 
     and expect to work with him to expand drug treatment services 
     in the State prison system and those provided to parolees--an 
     investment in drug treatment is a wise one. I will also seek 
     additional State funding for drug treatment programs in our 
     City understanding that our increased law enforcement efforts 
     will undoubtedly increase the call on existing resources.

                        Federal Anti-Drug Agenda

       Amend Crime Bill to allow monies for jail drug treatment 
     and to assistance for NYPD anti-drug initiatives.--On the 
     Federal level, I will continue to call for a foreign policy 
     which provides priority focus on our nation's drug problem 
     and for enhanced resources for border interdiction efforts. 
     In addition, I will seek Federal assistance for our 
     successful anti-drug law enforcement initiatives as was 
     provided in the Department's Northern Manhattan initiative, 
     and I will seek changes in the Federal Crime Bill to allow 
     local jail systems, not just State prison systems, to 
     directly receive funds to expand substance abuse services to 
     inmates and as well as pursue increased resources for Drug 
     Courts.
       Similarly, increased resources will be sought from the 
     Federal government to fund additional treatment services for 
     substance abusers in New York City. And, finally, I will 
     continue my efforts in urging Congress to appropriate Crime 
     Bill funds for prevention programs authorized under the Crime 
     Bill, including after-school sports activities, community 
     anti-drug programs and youth mentoring programs.


                               CONCLUSION

       Drug use is one of the nation's most difficult and complex 
     problems, but I refuse to accept the notion that somehow it 
     is beyond our reach and we must resign ourselves to it. We 
     must also refrain from the notion that unless we win 
     unconditionally, we have failed. This is not a problem that 
     developed overnight and we will not solve it overnight, but 
     we can begin to put in place a strategy such as the one I 
     outlined today with realistic steps to reduce its toll on our 
     neighborhoods and our schools. First steps always lead the 
     way to major breakthroughts. By applying the principles of 
     accountability, as we did in our successful strategies to 
     reduce crime, reform welfare, restore jobs and improve 
     schools, I am confident that we will succeed.


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