Remarks During a Visit to New York City To Review Drug Abuse Law Enforcement Activities.

Ladies and gentlemen:

Before leaving New York, I want to say how very impressed I have been with the dedication of both the Federal officials who are working in the field of dangerous drugs, and also the State officials.

Many times when we think of a national problem, one we have not yet solved, we do not give enough credit to the hundreds of thousands of people who are working on it, some voluntarily and tens of thousands working as Government officials. I am very proud of the fact that at the Federal level we have such dedicated people, and I am impressed by all of them and I feel that they deserve our total support.

Coming out of this day, I want to emphasize these points: As I talked to the people from New York State, I realized the need for money to deal with this problem. I am glad that in this Administration we have increased the amount of money for handling the problem of dangerous drugs sevenfold. It will be $600 million this year. More money will be needed in the future.

I want to say, however, that despite our budget problems, to the extent money can help in meeting the problem of dangerous drugs, it will be available. This is one area where we cannot have budget cuts because we must wage what I have called total war against public enemy number one in the United States: the problem of dangerous drugs.

The other point I wish to emphasize is that we see here in the Kennedy Airport the supply end of our program, and it is really a four-sided program:

We have got to stop the supply by such operations as this, by checking passengers as they come through, to see that they are not smuggling drugs in.

Second, we have to reduce the demand. That is through education and through other programs where people who might otherwise become addicted would know that this was the wrong step to take.

Third, we must have law enforcement that is effective. In this particular area, it is important to differentiate between those who are users and those who are trafficking in drugs. Both, of course, are violating the laws.

But for those who are users, we need a program--and this is the fourth part of our program--a program of treatment and rehabilitation. For those who traffic in drugs, for those who, for example, make hundreds of thousands of dollars, sometimes millions of dollars if you are looking at the business generally, and thereby destroy the lives of young people throughout this country, there should be no sympathy whatever, and no limit insofar as the criminal penalty is concerned.

I will only say in conclusion that I consider this to be the number one domestic problem that concerns the American people, because they realize parents are concerned about what happens to their children, but also the American people realize that when any nation, any people, goes down the road toward addiction to drugs, that nation has something taken out of its character.

We must not let it happen in America, and I am confident, based on the kind of people that we have working in our programs at the Federal and State level here in New York City, that we are making a major offensive effort that is going to pay off--pay off in criminal penalties for those that are guilty, pay off also on rehabilitation for those who are users, and also, here in the supply area, will pay off by stopping the source of supply, the source of supply which could destroy the character of so many of our young people, and eventually the character of this Nation.

Thank you.