Obama's New Drug Czar: Calling for a Coordinated Comprehensive Approach

The challenge requires prevention, treatment, and enforcement - and it starts with our youth.

From Join Together - Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske has been officially announced as President Barack Obama's "drug czar" by the White House, but unlike his recent predecessors, he will not serve as a member of the president's Cabinet.

"With escalating violence along our Southwest border and far too many suffering from the disease of addiction here at home, never has it been more important to have a national drug control strategy guided by sound principles of public safety and public health," said Obama in a March 11 press release. "We must demonstrate to our international partners, the criminal organizations threatening to undermine stability and the rule of law in those nations, and the American people, that we take seriously our responsibility to reduce drug use in the United States. Gil Kerlikowske has the expertise, the experience, and the sound judgment to lead our national efforts against drug trafficking and use, and he will make an excellent addition to my administration."

In a White House ceremony, Vice President Joseph Biden -- who helped create the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and has been a key architect of federal drug policy for decades -- said Kerlikowske "brings a lifetime of experience working on drug-policy issues. He has worked on the issue at all levels from the Department of Justice to the front lines as a major city chief. He understands that combating drugs requires a comprehensive approach that includes enforcement, prevention and treatment."

"What I find most appealing about [Kerlikowske] is that he says we can't operate in 'silos' -- with barriers thrown up between the criminal-justice system, the prevention and treatment community, and the recovery components of this problem ... He knows we need a comprehensive answer," said Biden. "And that's exactly what the vision we had in mind when we first ... created that office ... We know we needed tough laws, and we have tough laws. But that wasn't enough. We needed a balanced approach in combating drugs -- one that included prevention, treatment and enforcement."

Click here to read the complete story in Join Together.

To read the White House's May 11 release in the President's Briefing Room click here.

Shoulder Tap Operations: Think Twice About Buying Alcohol for Minors

25 arrested in Stanislaus County on suspicion of furnishing alcohol to a minor.

From the Modesto Bee - Authorities say some adults still are buying booze for minors, so more than 50 law enforcement officials hit the streets Saturday in Stanislaus County and 11 other Northern California counties in a coordinated effort to catch these people.

The officials participated in an undercover sting called a "shoulder tap," in which underage decoys stood outside stores and randomly asked adults to buy them a six-pack.

The entire operation, coordinated by Modesto police, was the largest ever such sting in Northern California, with officials from 17 law enforcement agencies working on the same day, said Modesto police Detective James Rokaitis.

For the complete story in the Modesto Bee click here.

Why is 21 the legal drinking age? Find out more here.

CBS News' 60 Minutes: Drinking Age Debate

The Debate On Lowering The Drinking Age
60 Minutes: Some Say Age Should Be Lowered To 18, But MADD And Others Strongly Disagree

February 22, 2009 (CBS) - Last fall, a group of over 100 college presidents - including the heads of Dartmouth, Virginia Tech and Duke - signed a declaration stating that the 21-year-old drinking age is not working, and fireworks went off. But the college presidents got what they wanted: a national debate about the drinking age. When the age was raised to 21 in the mid-1980s, the goal was to reduce highway fatalities. But everyone knows that the 21 age limit hasn't stopped minors from drinking.

And now some experts believe it's actually contributing to an increase in extreme drinking.

Lesley Stahl examines the debate over lowering the drinking age to 18, a controversial idea embraced by some people and roundly criticized by others.

View the CBS News video of Lesley Stahl's report here.
Read the complete CBS news story here.