The Drug Enforcement Administration

1703 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Drug use during vietnam war

Origin of the Agency

The Drug Enforcement Administration has a long history that marks its significance and succession. Much had been going on during the late nineteen-sixties and early seventies that shaped the years between such as: the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the Hippie movement, the closing days of the Vietnam War, the disbandment of the Beatles, Woodstock, the first man on the moon, and the beginning of the Watergate scandal (to name a few). President Richard Nixon took office in 1968, a time which was prevalent for ending the war in Vietnam and the violence across the United States due to anti-war and race riots.

Before the Drug Enforcement Administration was enacted, issues that dealt with drugs were handled by different federal agencies rather than one agency as it is set up presently. “Federal drug law enforcement began in 1915 with the Bureau of Internal Revenue” (“Drug Enforcement Administration” 4). Illegal drug use has always been an issue and continues to increase and remain to be a prevailing problem across the nation. The 1960’s marked the predominant era for the increase of drug use. This was a time where the hippie-marijuana movement manifested, organized crime mobs were overt and famous psychologist and writer Timothy Leary was advocating for psychedelic drugs. During his Presidency, Richard Nixon felt it necessary to instill a more effective approach in dealing with the increasing drug problem in order to protect America from violence and to “restore law and order” as he would say was his goal and slogan for his campaign in the 1968 Presidential election. Prior to the creation of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), drug control was being regulated under the Bureau of Narcotics and Da...

... middle of paper ...

.... 2011. .

“Drug Enforcement Administration 1970-1975.” The United States Drug Enforcement Admininstration. The United States Drug Enforcement Admininstration, n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2011. .

“MICHELE M. LEONHART DEA Administrator Drug Enforcement Administration U.S. Department of Justice.” United States Drug Enforcement Administration. United States Drug Enforcement Administration, n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2011. .

“An Overview of Federal Drug Control Programs on the Southwest Border Drug Enforcement Administration.” Publications Office of National Drug Control Policy . US Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, 30 Nov. 2011. Web. 6 Dec. 2011. .

Show More
Related

  • Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI

    564 Words  | 2 Pages

    The mission and values of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is up held with strong Constitutional values. Over the years since the FBI was created in 1908 by Attorney General Charles Bonaparte during the Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt. As a progressive during this time period Bonaparte applied his philosophy to forming the FBI with several corps of agents. His thought was that these men should have expertise and not political connections. With the U.S. Constitution based on “federalism” a national government with jurisdiction over matters that cross boundaries, such as interstate and foreign affairs.

    Read More

  • The DEA

    1627 Words  | 4 Pages

    On our planet, phenomena’s occur occasionally in nature. Tornadoes, earthquakes, and flashfloods are all types of phenomena’s that could occur. Most of these mysterious events are small and go unnoticed; however, on a rare occasion these sorts of event can be horrendous. One such occasion occurred back around 4,000 BC (Werner Keller, 48). As the story goes, God’s population was growing rapidly on earth. At this point, he had been growing bored with the same people on earth so he made sure no man would live past the age of 120. Given this time, the people of earth started to take advantage of the human race; these acts of selfishness disgusted God. He decided to destroy everything on earth. A man by the name of Noah had lived his life by God’s nature, which eventually led to a close relationship between the two. God had told Noah to build a boat with exact measurements. God had instructed Noah to put two of every kind of animal into the boat; one had to be male and the other female. Then God told Noah to get into the boat with his family, their families, and the animals. Then for forty days and forty nights the clouds seemed to have poured endless amounts of water onto the earth (Genesis 6:1-9). Floods rushed through the landscape, destroying everything in its path. The waters were higher than the tallest mountains, standing above the highest peaks. All living things on earth had died. The water covered the earth at this level for five months (Paul S. Taylor, 1). In time the water began to dry up. Eventually Noah was able to leave the ship and release all he had brought with him. From this point, evolution occurs.

    Read More

  • Nixon War On Drugs

    1570 Words  | 4 Pages

    While the War on Drugs may have been portrayed as a colorblind movement, Nixon’s presidency and reasoning for its implementation solidifies that it was not. Nixon coined the term “War on Drugs” in his 1971 anti-drug campaign speech, starting the beginning of an era. He voiced, “If there is one area where the word ‘war’ is appropriate, it is in the fights against crime” (DuVernay, 13th). This terminology solidified to the public that drug abusers were an enemy, and if the greatest publicized abusers were black, then black people were then enemy. This “war” started by Nixon claimed it would rid the nation of dealers, but in fact, 4/5 of arrests were for possession only (Alexander, 60). Nixon employed many tactics in order to advance the progress

    Read More

  • The Mexican Drug Cartels

    2654 Words  | 6 Pages

    Mexico is a country rich in tradition, history and culture. Unfortunately, Mexico has not been talked about for any of those descriptions I mentioned above lately. Mexico has become a country full of death and violence. The Mexican government has been fighting a war with drug traffickers since December 2006. At the same time, drug cartels have fought each other for control of territory. More than 60,000 people have been killed (CNN). Despite the “war” launched at these multi-billion dollar organized crime groups, Mexico has not been able to stop its slide as a failed state. Almost every day there seems to be either dead bodies lying on the ground, a school closed due to vandalism, disappeared people, or bullet-riddled houses and cars. Sadly, there is not much the citizens of Mexico can do to ask for justice and change to the mess they are living in right now. So who is to blame for all of this? The Mexican drug cartels have completely taken over Mexico. They have become powerful through corruption and violence. The cartels use their power to intimidate and even murder anyone who tries to get in their way. They do not have a problem with decapitating heads in order to make a statement. The drug cartels also use their money to gain power. Given the amount of money they have, the cartels have millions of dollars invested in keeping authorities off their business. They can be very effective in bribing government officials at all levels, from border patrol just patrolling the border to state and high ranking federal officials. Given the resources they have, they can reach out and kill government officials at all levels. Since government officials are faced with bribes and or certain death, even the most unbreakable are caut...

    Read More

  • Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    575 Words  | 2 Pages

    Immigration and Customs Enforcement often referred to as I.C.E is an elite agency under the branch of Homeland Security formed in 2003 in response to the attacks on 9/11. ICE has two major components, Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations. It is also the second largest law enforcement organization in the United States, second only to the FBI. ICE was created when merger of the investigative and interior enforcement elements of the U.S. Customs Service and the Immigration and Naturalization Service. ICE has over twenty thousand employees in offices all over the U.S. and in forty seven foreign countries, about seven thousands of these employees are special agents. ICE has only one field office in New Jersey, located in Newark but it has nearby offices in Philadelphia and New York City. ICE has six detention facilities in New Jersey. A few of them are: Bergen County Jail, Monmouth County Correctional Institution, and Essex County Correctional Facility. Currently ICE doesn’t have a director, but the assistant director is Daniel Ragsdale and Chie...

    Read More

  • Research Papers On Mass Incarceration

    794 Words  | 2 Pages

    The war on drug not only change the structure of the criminal justice system, it also change the ways that police officers, prosecutors and judges do their jobs. Even worse, the way politicians address crime. The tough stand on drugs started during the Nixon presidency, most of the resources was focus on medical treatment rather than punishment. Although it was a better strategy and alternative than the drug war policies that exist today, it was a very divisive issue between the conservatives and the liberals. The war on drug ignited during the Reagan administration, two third of the financial resources were being spent on law enforcement. In addition, the end of the cold war left the United States with weaponry and resources that needed to be repurposed. As a result, small town were given high power grade artilleries and weaponry, and means to form specialized tactical units such as SWAT teams in case of unusual event. To maintain and justify the need for these new expenditures, SWAT teams are used in any drug warran...

    Read More

  • Drug Trafficking and Its Effects on US Policy and Economy

    1558 Words  | 4 Pages

    Drug trafficking has been a massive concern between the borders of Mexico and the U.S. “since mid 1970s” (Wyler, 1). Drug trafficking is “knowingly being in possession, manufacturing, selling, purchasing, or delivering an illegal, controlled substance” (LaMance, 1). A dynamic relationship exists amongst Columbia, Mexico, and the U.S. the informal drug trafficking economy. This growing informal drug economy leads to many individuals creating a substantial living through this undercover market. These individual drug cartels monopolizing the trafficking market are a growing problem for the U.S economy and need to be located and controlled. If this trafficking continues, the U.S. informal economy will crush the growth of legal industries. The trafficking and abuse of drugs in the U.S. affects nearly all aspects of consumer life. Drug trafficking remains a growing issue and concern to the U.S. government. The U.S. border control must find a way to work with Mexico to overpower the individuals who contribute to the drug trafficking business. This market must be seized and these individuals must be stopped.

    Read More

  • The War on Drugs: Drug Sentencing Reform

    1180 Words  | 3 Pages

    The war on drugs began with the presidential term of President Nixon in the 1970s. According to drugpolicy.org, “He dramatically increased the size and presence of federal drug control agencies, and pushed through measures such as mandatory sentencing and no-knock warrants. Nixon temporarily placed marijuana in Schedule One, the most restrictive category of drugs.”

    Read More

  • The War on Drugs: Failures of the Drug Law Part 1

    4153 Words  | 9 Pages

    “[The war on drugs] has created a multibillion-dollar black market, enriched organized crime groups and promoted the corruption of government officials throughout the world,” noted Eric Schlosser in his essay, “A People’s Democratic Platform”, which presents a case for decriminalizing controlled substances. Government policies regarding drugs are more focused towards illegalization rather than revitalization. Schlosser identifies a few of the crippling side effects of the current drug policy put in place by the Richard Nixon administration in the 1970s to prohibit drug use and the violence and destruction that ensue from it (Schlosser 3). Ironically, not only is drug use as prevalent as ever, drug-related crime has also become a staple of our society. In fact, the policy of the criminalization of drugs has fostered a steady increase in crime over the past several decades. This research will aim to critically analyze the impact of government statutes regarding drugs on the society as a whole.

    Read More

  • Pros And Cons Of Drug Enforcement Administration

    935 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Drug Enforcement Administration has many careers and responsibilities within the the entire agency. there are many different careers like Special agent, Diversion investigator, Intelligence research specialist, Forensic scientist, and Student/entry level positions. Theres a very big responsibility of the Drug Enforcement Administration and thats to Enforce laws on drugs and protect the people from harmful substances. Many harmful substances are getting out to the people everyday so the DEA must take actions against this threat to try and prevent or catch it before its to late. Many people try to get in with the DEA but its just as difficult as becoming a police officer now a days. There are many pros and cons to working for the Drug Enforcement Administration some good and some not so good.

    Read More

  • The House I Live In Movie Analysis

    1850 Words  | 4 Pages

    Woolley, John T., and Gerhard Peters. "Richard Nixon: Special Message to the Congress on Drug Abuse Prevention and Control." The American Presidency Project. The American Presidency Project, n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.

    Read More

  • The drug control policy of the United States

    1414 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Office of National Drug Control Policy.” The White House. USA, 1 Dec. 2011. Web. 8 Dec. 2011. .

    Read More

  • Drug Policy

    1001 Words  | 3 Pages

    The National Drug Control Strategy was issued two years ago to reduce drug use among teenagers and adults. The success of the President’s drug policy can be measured by its results. The student drug testing approach has reduced drug use and discouraged first time users significantly. Communities have been more actively involved in anti-drug programs for youth and adults. The increase in budget for law enforcement will enhance their effectiveness in detaining drug lords and cartels.

    Read More

  • The Department of Homeland Security and Border Security

    1130 Words  | 3 Pages

    Over the course of the history of the United States of America, the country has had struggles with its own borders and the protection of those borders. Illegal immigration is a big problem and the smuggling of drugs, weapons, and cash over our borders into our country has evolved into a bigger problem. The United States has over seven-thousand miles of border to cover each day. That is quite a bit of land, but the only problem with this is there is a lack of manpower to cover every single mile of border. The US shares its borders with Canada and Mexico. All along these borders are small communities and cities that are occupied by US citizens. This means that these cities and communities require the protection of our Homeland Security Agency.

    Read More

  • Anti-legalization of Drugs

    1059 Words  | 3 Pages

    stigation, Uniform Crime Reports for the United States 1996, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office ( 1997) Inciardi, James A. "The Wars on Drugs." Palo Alto: Mayfield, 1986 Kennedy, X.J., Dorthy M. Kennedy, and Jane E. Aaron, eds. The Bedford Reader.

    Read More

More about The Drug Enforcement Administration

Open Document