Pubdate: Mon, 05 Oct 2015
Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal (NV)
Copyright: 2015 Las Vegas Review-Journal
Contact: http://www.reviewjournal.com/about/print/press/letterstoeditor.html
Website: http://www.lvrj.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/233

DEA WHITEWASH

Another Failure of the War on Drugs

Each year, the United States spends more than $51 billion on the war 
on drugs - a war we're clearly losing. The war has become so futile 
that the federal agency charged with leading the fight has undermined 
its own mission - and no one is being held accountable.

A Justice Department review found that, for years, DEA agents 
assigned to Colombia indulged in sex parties involving prostitutes 
supplied by drug cartels. The report found that local police often 
stood guard during the parties, keeping an eye on the agents' weapons 
and other belongings, and that three DEA supervisors involved in the 
parties accepted gifts of money, weapons and other items from the cartels.

"Most of the sex parties occurred in government-leased quarters where 
agents' laptops, BlackBerry devices and other government-issued 
equipment were present ... potentially exposing them to extortion, 
blackmail or coercion," the report said.

Despite the fact that the misconduct put agents and national security 
at risk, the agency's Office of Security Programs was never made 
aware of the issue, and the agents were issued paltry suspensions 
ranging from 10 to as little as two days.

But DEA misconduct goes much deeper.

According to newly released U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration 
discipline logs reviewed by USA Today and the Huffington Post, agency 
employees have avoided termination for a variety of serious 
violations, including falsifying official records, having an 
"improper association with a criminal element" using and distributing 
drugs and driving government vehicles while drunk. And when 
administrators did recommend termination - which was rare - the 
agency's Board of Professional Conduct often rolled back the 
punishments to suspensions and lesser penalties, and even forced the 
DEA to rehire the violators.

No accountability whatsoever within a federal agency? Where have we 
heard this before?

The findings in the Justice Department, USA Today and Huffington Post 
reviews highlight a culture of corruption within the DEA. It's 
unrealistic to expect an entire workforce to be free of misconduct. 
But it's reasonable to demand that problem employees are terminated.

This is more proof that the war on drugs is a counterproductive 
boondoggle of epic proportions. Our high-priced prohibition 
initiatives around the world have resulted in increased demand for 
illegal drugs, higher cartel profits and the United States having the 
highest incarceration rate in the world. Instead of propping up a 
lucrative global black market, the United States could put the 
cartels out of business by legalizing, regulating and taxing 
currently illegal drugs.

Every single presidential and congressional candidate needs to 
articulate whether they support continuing Washington's war on drugs 
or whether they'd rather rein it in. And every single presidential 
and congressional candidate should put forward a plan to reform 
federal work rules so federal employees can actually be fired.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom