Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Senate has just voted to move forward with the confirmation of Vanita Gupta as Associate Attorney General. Many already know about her vocal support for defunding the police. But in 2012, Gupta, along with the ACLU’s Director of the Criminal Law Reform Project, penned an article discussing criminal justice reform. In that piece, she proposed this:
“Decriminalize/”Defelonize” Drug Possession. States should decriminalize simple possession of all drugs, particularly marijuana, and for small amounts of other drugs.”
While she aggressively backpedaled from those statements to save her nomination, now that she is Associate Attorney General it must be made clear that America is in no position to go all-in on all drugs.
As our nation slowly crawls itself out of a major opioid epidemic that claimed countless individuals and destroyed families, Senators in particularly hard-hit states such as Maggie Hassan’s New Hampshire, need to answer for their vote in support of Gupta as the new Associate Attorney General.
Statement from NRSC Spokesman T.W. Arrighi: “The opioid epidemic ravaged our nation and left hundreds of thousands dead across the country and destroyed countless lives. Advocating for any blanket decriminalization of drugs is reckless and will cost even more lives. Vulnerable Senators from states who have been hit the hardest by the opioid epidemic – such as Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, need to answer for their support of this radical nominee.”
###