The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“THE FIGHT ON DRUGS” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S5142-S5143 on May 16, 1996.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
THE FIGHT ON DRUGS
Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, let me say, Mr. President, that it always saddens me when the floor of the U.S. Senate is turned into a place to debate issues regarding the Presidential race. I think it is very important that when things are stated on the floor that are not true, we have an opportunity to respond. I thank the chairman of the Budget Committee for giving me that opportunity.
There is a lot of talk around here about the failure of this President to crack down on the issue of drug enforcement. I want to set the record straight. Federal drug prosecutions are up 13 percent from 1994. Federal prosecutors achieved an 84 percent conviction rate in all drug cases in 1995. So we are beginning to see a change. During the past 3 years, there has been a 9.4 percent increase in prosecutions of the toughest, most complex drug cases. There are now about 48,000 convicted drug dealers in Federal prisons, three-fifths of the total Federal inmate population, and the highest number in history.
There has been a drug-testing initiative. The President ordered Federal prosecutors to seek drug testing of all people arrested on Federal criminal charges, and is seeking $42 million to fund this initiative in 1997. These tests will help Federal judges determine whether a defendant should be granted bail.
The Justice Department has funded 65 grants, totaling $8.5 million to help communities establish and expand drug courts that help break the cycle of drugs and crime. The 1994 Crime Act authorized $1 billion through the year 2000 to support State and local drug courts.
So, Mr. President, people can come down here and make speeches about our President. But at least have the facts. I think this President, and every President, is entitled to the facts. Who is the President that came up with the idea of putting 100,000 cops on the beat? It was this President of the United States of America, Bill Clinton, who came up with the idea that we need more cops on the beat, because it is prevention to have cops on the beat, it is prevention to have community policing. It is the other side of the aisle that wants to rescind that law providing 100,000 cops on the beat and replace it with a block grant, and who knows where the money will go. We want cops on the beat. We are on our way to getting it done. Which President signed the Violence Against Women Act? I am so proud of that because I worked with Senator Joe Biden on it for 5 long years. It was this President. And we are going after violence in domestic situations. We are going after the crime of rape. We are working toward making streets safer. Do we have a long way to go? Of course, we do. This is complicated.
Clearly, if we can get drugs out of society, there will be a decrease in crime. We know there is a definite correlation here. We have a President who understands we need enforcement and understands we need very good people to prosecute these cases. We have a President who has cracked down on the border. I come from California, and we are seeing an entirely different situation down there, with large increases in the Border Patrol, and with the U.S. attorney who has just done wonders with the conviction rate of second-time criminal aliens coming back into this country from Mexico. He has prosecuted more of them in 1 year than the previous 5 years altogether.
So when we come down to this floor and we start to use it as a debate over the Presidential race, I wish we would not do it. But if we do it, let us be honorable about it. Let us be factual about it. This is the President who fought so hard to take prevention, effective prosecution, enforcement, interdiction--take all of those aspects of fighting drugs and putting them into one policy, getting through an effective crime bill, and making sure that in fact we are waging an effective war on drugs. This is the President who understands this issue.
So I want to thank my chairman of the Budget Committee for giving me this opportunity to put into the Record what the record truly is. And the fact of the matter is since I have been here all I have heard from many on the other side is a desire to repeal the crime bill, repeal the ban on assault weapons which are used by gangs, repeal the Brady bill which has kept weapons out of the hands of 67,000 people who have had mental health problems in the past. We do not want those people getting guns.
I appreciate this opportunity to correct the record.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
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