U.S. policy more interested in failed drug war than protecting Americans

Mike Krause, veteran of the Coast Guard, and director of the Justice Policy Initiative, writes in the Denver Post: Drug war trumps port safety

The top objective of the U.S. Coast Guard’s anti-terrorism strategy is to protect what’s called the “U.S. Maritime Domain,” including American ports.
But it is hard to take seriously the idea that ports are being effectively protected when the Coast Guard spent more tax dollars last year fighting the war on drugs than has been spent in total on port security since Sept. 11, 2001.

So the Coast Guard spends its time and our money on headline-grabbing drug seizures that don’t make a dent in supply, while leaving the ports alone.

So not only does cocaine interdiction distract the Coast Guard from its port security mission, cocaine interdiction itself is failing.
Most disturbing is that Congress, the Coast Guard and the drug czar all seem fine with this – and, in fact, want even more of the same.