war on drugs fail
Just after swearing in Alabama drug warrior Jeff Sessions as Attorney General, President Trump signed three new executive orders to pursue a 'law and order' agenda. One order seeks to protect police from violence, setting up a prelude to mandatory minimum sentencing and expanded definitions of crime.

Although 2016 violent police deaths are up from the previous year, the general trend is down considerably. As we reported in 2015, killings of police spiked during alcohol prohibition in the 1920s, and again in the late 1960s as drug prohibition ramped up. From there, killings of police have steadily declined, with recent years being almost the safest ever for cops.

on-duty deaths of police officers
© Vox.com
The other two executive orders seek to: 1) reduce crime, especially "illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and violent crime," and, 2) direct a review of the Threat Mitigation Working Group so it can focus on international drug cartels. Mexican cartels will undoubtedly be the prime target.

The ceremonious orders, underscored with false claims about rising crime and murder rates, would lead one to believe we are in the midst of an epidemic. But the reality is that crime rates — and especially the murder rate — are at near historic lows. Also, several studies have shown that immigrants are less likely to commit crime than people born in the U.S.

US murder rate
© Vox.com
We don't really know yet how team Trump will carry out the orders, but we do know they are not guided by the facts. The 'law and order' ideology - a throwback to the Nixon strategy of capturing white fear by harping on inner city and immigrant crime - has long been an obsession with Trump and Sessions.

Regarding the war on drugs, Trump gets points for saying he thinks states should be able to legalize cannabis. Sessions, however, is a rabid drug warrior who relies on falsehoods spouted by the DEA to justify his archaic thoughts on cannabis.

Although legal weed states may be left alone, from the executive orders it appears the general War on Drugs is about to see a major escalation - to the delight of the prison industry and law enforcement engaged in policing for profit.

Ramping up the drug war, which has done nothing to reduce drug supply or use, would be a disaster that serves no purpose other than empowering the police state. This approach would demonstrate a complete ignorance of history, economics and evolution.