Oregon’s decriminalization policy is failing. As one expert simply put it, after Oregon passed Measure 110 to reclassify possession penalties, all the state has seen is “extensive drug use, extensive addiction and not much treatment seeking.”
In fact, overdose deaths skyrocketed 20% in the year that ended in April 2022 as the state’s treatment hotline was called fewer than 200 times. And as drug use surges, so does crime. Portland’s homicide rate is up 207% from 2019.
So where do Oregon’s gubernatorial nominees stand on the failed measure? Democrat Tina Kotek wants to pour more money into the failing program because repealing it , she says, would take too much time. Republican Christine Drazan opposes the measure and refuses to accept drug addiction and crime as the new status quo.
Unfortunately, Democrats nationwide aren’t heeding the alarm sirens coming out of Oregon.
Democrats might not be listening, but the American people are and will vote accordingly in November.
