Before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

Hearing on the nomination of

John Walters to be Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy

Mr. Chairman, it is with great confidence and high regard that I introduce to the Committee John Walters, the nominee for Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, ONDCP. As everyone is keenly aware, Mr. Walters’ hearing was postponed on September 11 literally in the wake of the terrorist attacks. Since the September 11 attacks, there has been a lot of discussion about the nexus between drug trafficking and terrorism. We know insurgent groups in Colombia have long been characterized as narco-terrorists because of their known use of cocaine proceeds to fund terrorist acts, including the kidnaping of Americans abroad. We know that proceeds from the manufacturing and trafficking of opium poppy have helped sustain Osama bin Laden’s terrorist organization Al Qadea for years. We also know that terrorist organizations routinely launder the proceeds from drug trafficking and use the funds to support and expand their operations internationally, including purchasing and trafficking illegal weapons. I’m sure in the coming months and years, we will continue to learn about the clandestine connection between drugs and terrorists.

Mr. Walters will be starting his tenure as Drug Czar at a very precarious time, but I know he is the right person to fill this position. He will have to work closely with law enforcement and intelligence authorities to ensure that the international component of the nation’s drug control policy is designed not only to prevent drugs from being trafficked into America but also to prevent the manufacturing and sale of drugs for the purpose of funding terrorist activities. Mr. Walters is eminently qualified to carry out this task, and I am confident that he will be a first-rate Director. After all, having served at ONDCP and the Department of Education with Bill Bennett, he learned from the person widely regarded–by Republicans and Democrats alike–as the most talented and effective drug czar we have had in this country.

John Walters career in public service has prepared him well for this office. Like you Mr. Chairman, he has worked tirelessly over the last two decades helping to formulate and improve comprehensive policies designed to keep drugs away from our children. Also like you, he truly has unparalleled knowledge and experience in all facets of drug control policy. As an assistant to Secretary Bennett from 1985-1988, Mr. Walters was responsible for managing drug prevention policy and programs for the Department of Education. As Director Bennett’s chief-of-staff at ONDCP, Mr. Walters was responsible for drafting and implementing a sensible and effective drug control policy. And as Deputy Director for Supply Reduction at ONDCP, Mr. Walters formulated interdiction policies to keep drugs away from America’s youth. Lest there be any doubt that Mr. Walters’ efforts proved successful, let me point out to the Committee that during Mr. Walters’ tenure at the Department of Education and ONDCP, drug use in America had fallen to its lowest level at any time in the past 25 years, and drug use by teens plunged over 50 percent.
Since leaving ONDCP in 1993, Mr. Walters has remained a vocal committed advocate for curbing drug use. He has testified numerous times before Congress, including this Committee, on drug policy issues, and he has also written extensively about that subject. Since 1996, he has served as president of the Philanthropy Roundtable. In that capacity, he has worked with foundations and private donors in many areas of charitable giving, including support for both drug prevention and treatment programs.

Mr. Walters enjoys widespread support from distinguished members of the law enforcement community, including the Fraternal Order of Police and the National Troopers Coalition, and from mainstream members from the prevention and treatment communities, including the Partnership for Drug Free America, National Families in Action,
and the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America. Yet, despite this groundswell of support, ever since Mr. Walters’ name was first mentioned in connection with the Drug Czar position, some individuals and groups have attacked his nomination with a barrage of unfounded criticisms. Today I am pleased to have the opportunity to set the record straight and to emphasize why our country needs John Walters confirmed now.

We all agree that if we are to win the war on drugs in America, we need a comprehensive policy aimed at reducing both the demand for and supply of drugs. Mr. Walters’ accomplished record demonstrates that he has always believed in such a comprehensive approach that focuses on both demand and supply reduction. For example, in testimony given before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1991, Mr. Walters, then acting Director of ONDCP, laid out a national drug control strategy that included the following guiding principles: educating our citizens about the dangers of drug use; placing more addicts in effective treatment programs; expanding the number and quality of treatment programs; reducing the supply and availability of drugs on our streets; and dismantling trafficking organizations through tough law enforcement and interdiction measures. And again, in Congressional testimony given in 1993, Mr. Walters reaffirmed that an effective anti-drug strategy must "integrate efforts to reduce the supply of as well as the demand for illegal drugs."

Some have voiced concern that Mr. Walters will put prosecution before prevention, tougher laws before treatment. To the contrary, Mr. Walters’ record is replete with calls for more and better prevention and treatment programs. For instance, the drug strategy announced by Mr. Walters in 1991 had as its highest priority "preventing drug use before it starts." And he wasn’t just mouthing those words, for prevention spending increased by 88 percent during his five-year tenure at ONDCP. No other component, including law enforcement and interdiction, was increased more than prevention. His record on drug treatment belies the concern as well. In 1993, he testified that more and better treatment was sorely needed, and he worked to remedy the shortfall. During his tenure at ONDCP, spending on drug treatment increased 74 percent. Mr. Chairman, this is not the record of a man who would turn his back on prevention and treatment efforts.

And John Walters remains committed to treatment and prevention programs. Mr. Chairman, earlier this year I introduced S. 304, the "Drug Abuse Education, Prevention, and Treatment Act of 2001," a bipartisan bill, that I drafted with you and Senators Leahy, DeWine, Thurmond, and Feinstein. This legislation, as you know, will dramatically increase prevention and treatment efforts. In drafting the bill, I repeatedly solicited Mr. Walters’ expert advice. I know, and his record clearly reflects, that he agrees with me and my colleagues that prevention and treatment must remain integral components of our national drug control strategy.

John Walters knows what it takes to reduce youth drug use, and he will be taking the helm at ONDCP at a critical time. According to the most recent national surveys, youth drug use, particularly of so-called "club drugs" such as Ecstasy and GHB, tragically is again on the rise. Over the past two years, current use of ecstasy among 12th graders increased dramatically by 140 percent. During this same period, the number of emergency room visits resulting from the use of ecstasy increased 295 percent, and 80 percent of those visits were by patients under the age of 25. It is simply shocking that by the time of graduation from high school, over 50 percent of our youth have used an illicit drug. We must act immediately to reverse these soaring numbers and to prevent our youth from endangering their lives. I look forward to hearing from Mr. Walters what he plans to do to reverse these dangerous developments.

Fortunately, Mr. Walters will have extraordinarily talented deputies to help him with this daunting challenge. In selecting Scott Burns–a Utahn I might add–to handle State and Local Affairs, Dr. Barry Crane to head the Office of Supply Reduction, Dr. Andrea Barthwell to lead the Office of Demand Reduction, and Mary Ann Solberg as the Deputy Czar, the President has assembled a team of dedicated and knowledgeable professionals. I look forward to working with Mr. Walters, his deputies, and the Administration in finding new ways to solve – rather than surrender to – America’s drug problem.

Mr. Chairman, no senator has worked harder and longer on the drug issue than you, and it is a testament to your dedication to America’s youth that you are chairing this important hearing. You and I both want to see youth drug use rates fall, and we know that one of the keys to this goal is prompt passage of S. 304. Another of those keys, Mr. Chairman, is John Walters. The President shares our commitment to a balanced drug policy, and he has expressed his eagerness to begin working with us to attack the problem of drug abuse.

Rightfully, the Senate has been focusing primarily on passing the anti-terrorism bill and legislation related to the September 11 attack. However, in light of the documented connection between international drug trafficking and terrorist activities and the ongoing war against drugs and terrorism, now more than ever, the Administration and the country need to have its Drug Czar in place. It is of the utmost importance that the Senate act on Mr. Walters’ nomination immediately. With Mr. Walters in place, I look forward to working with my Senate Democratic colleagues to carry forward our fight against drug trafficking and terrorism.

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