    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 33, Number 10 (Monday, March 10, 1997)]
    [Pages 271-272]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    The President's Radio Address

    March 1, 1997

        Good morning. Today I want to talk about what we must do to
    strengthen our effort to keep drugs away from our neighborhoods and out
    of our children's lives. First, we must fight drugs before they reach
    our borders and keep them out of America. This is a battle we must fight
    together with other nations.
        Every year the President is legally required to certify whether
    other nations are doing their part. Yesterday, I accepted Secretary of
    State Madeleine Albright's recommendation to certify Mexico, to certify
    that Mexico is cooperating with us in this fight.
        Mexican President Zedillo is fighting a tough, uphill battle against
    the drug cartels which corrupt Mexico's law enforcement agencies. But
    President Zedillo has taken brave action, firing more than 1,200 tainted
    officials, extraditing criminals for the first time, passing tough laws,
    arresting his own drug czar for corruption. In the past year, their
    seizures of marijuana, cocaine, and heroin are up, drug-related arrests
    have increased, and eradication efforts have reached record levels.
        Make no mistake about it, Mexico has a serious drug problem. But
    Mexico's leaders recognize that problem, and they have the will to fight
    it. We must do whatever we can to give them the means to succeed.
    Stamping out the drug trade is a long-term battle. It won't be won
    overnight. We will continue to press our Mexican partners to take tough
    action that will protect all our people from drugs.
        Stopping drugs at their source is a critical part of the antidrug
    strategy I announced earlier this week. My balanced budget pays for the
    largest antidrug effort ever. Under the leadership of our national drug
    czar, General Barry McCaffrey, who's here with me at the radio address
    this morning, this plan will crack down on drug dealers and help parents
    teach their children just how dangerous drugs are. We must give our
    children the straight facts. They need to hear a constant drumbeat from
    all of us: Drugs are wrong; drugs are illegal; drugs can kill you. The
    more children know about how dangerous drugs are, the less likely they
    are to use them.
        Our drug strategy includes an unprecedented national advertising
    campaign to get out the facts and shape the attitudes of young people
    about drugs. And we must do more to sever the dangerous connection
    between illegal drugs and violent crime.
        Illegal drugs are involved with the vast majority of violent crimes
    in America--drug dealers carrying guns, violent criminals on drugs and
    out of control, gang wars over drug-trafficking turf. One million
    Americans are arrested every year for breaking the drug laws. Two-thirds
    of all the men in State prisons have abused drugs regularly.
        Unfortunately, most of the people who enter jail as drug addicts
    leave jail still addicted or about to become addicts again. When
    criminals on parole or ex-convicts out of jail go back on drugs, the
    chances are enormously high they will commit new crimes. According to
    some experts, 60 percent of all the heroin and cocaine sold in America
    is sold to people on bail, parole, or probation. Two-thirds of prisoners
    with a history of heroin or cocaine use who are released without
    treatment are back on drugs within just 3 months. We must break this
    cycle of crime and drugs once and for all.
        Last fall, Congress passed my proposal to require drug testing and
    treatment for prison inmates and convicts on parole. Our prisons must
    not be illegal drug markets, and anyone given a chance to go straight
    and live a better life must be absolutely drug-free. The bill I signed
    said to the States, we want to continue helping you build prisons, but
    if you want the money to do that, you must start drug testing prisoners
    and parolees.

    [[Page 272]]

        In December, I announced Justice Department guidelines to help
    States meet this requirement. The guidelines are straightforward. By
    March 1, 1998, one year from today, every State must submit to the
    Attorney General a clearly defined, comprehensive plan to test prisoners
    and parolees, to treat those who need it and punish those who go back on
    drugs.

        Today I'm announcing that I am sending all 50 Governors a letter to
    make it clear that General McCaffrey and Attorney General Reno are
    prepared to help every State get this job done. We'll provide guidance
    and resources, experts, technical assistance, access to new technology.
    We'll give that to every State that needs help in developing its plans.
    At the same time, this, too, should be perfectly clear: Any State
    without a prisoner and parolee drug testing plan one year from today
    will lose Federal prison assistance until a plan is submitted. We want
    to help States build the prison space they need, but we will not help to
    build prisons that tolerate drugs by turning a blind eye.

        The Federal Government and State governments must work together as
    partners to get this done. It's time to say to inmates, if you stay on
    drugs, you'll stay in jail; if you want out of jail, you have to get off
    drugs. It's time to say to parolees, if you go back on drugs, you'll go
    back to jail; if you want to stay out of jail, stay off drugs.

        We must fight drugs on every front, on our streets and in our
    schools, at our borders and in our homes. Every American must accept
    this responsibility. There is no more insidious threat to a good future
    than illegal drugs. I'm counting on all of you to help us win the fight
    against them.
        Thanks for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 4:28 p.m. on February 28 in the
    Roosevelt Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on March
    1.