PRESIDENT Donald Trump’s plan to combat opioid drug addiction calls for harsher punishments for drug traffickers, including the death penalty.
The US leader also wants congress to pass legislation reducing the amount of drugs needed to trigger mandatory minimum sentences for traffickers who knowingly distribute certain illicit opioids.
The president is scheduled to unveil his plan in New Hampshire, a state hit hard by the crisis.
Trump drew criticism last year after leaked transcripts of his telephone conversation with Mexico’s president published in the Washington Post showed he had described New Hampshire as a “drug-infested den”.
The White House’s plan to break the international and domestic flow of drugs into and across the US also includes broadening education and awareness, and expanding access to proven treatment and recovery efforts.
Trump mused openly in recent weeks about subjecting drug dealers to the “ultimate penalty”.
The president told an audience at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania this month that countries like Singapore have fewer issues with drug addiction because of capital punishment.
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