The NexGen Patriots exists to inspire, inform, and empower every generation of Americans by connecting faith, values, and community with the issues that shape everyday life. Through meaningful conversations and real stories, the podcast provides a platform where local voices meet national discussions—bridging the gap between small-town perspectives and broader cultural and civic topics. We highlight the strength and resilience of communities while promoting informed citizenship rooted in integrity, responsibility, and hope for the future.
The drug crisis can't be solved through enforcement alone. While recovery remains essential, the strongest long-term solution is prevention. By giving young people the confidence and knowledge to resist peer pressure, communities can reduce demand and help protect the next generation.
What do you feel like your solution is to this drug crisis, not just as a state but nationwide? Well, here's the way I look at it. Okay. Again, I I'm a history major, buddy. But I know a little, I did listen to economics in high school just a little bit and understand, you know, a little bit about supply and demand. Okay. Drug dealers have got to have demand. There's got to be demand. They've got a product, clearly, that they've been able to get people hooked on, right? It's not probably a hard thing to sell once you get somebody hooked on it, assuming that they can have money. But they've got to have some demand. And what are we going to do about demand? Is what I always say. Because we, every day in my office, I'm trying to kick doors down to kill supply. I'm pulling cars over all the time to kill supply. Um, we can do that as long as we want. But there's a reason why stores that keep getting robbed restock the shelves because people are going to come in and buy it. So that drugs are going to keep coming, and we will keep picking them off and bringing the bad guys out. So I think you have to attack with interdiction, like we're doing in my office. You have to find and chase your way up the ladder to try to find the big drug dealers, okay? So that's one thing. But then what are you going to do about the demand side? And people always, you know, we talk about recovery, and I and I applaud people that are in the recovery, but it's just such a moving chart. We don't even know what we're doing. I mean, I know there's there's evidence-based programs out there uh that, you know, that that are tr are are doing the best they can. And again, I applaud them for doing it. Yeah. But the reality is we haven't found that the right pedagogy or whatever it is to sort of make that work. But that's something we have to continue on. But there's no question that the best way to cut it off at the past is through prevention. I believe that fully, I will tell you that frankly. Um a child that never wants to try drugs is a drug dealer's worst nightmare. Um and so how do we do that? It's not just about saying no. I was with a program last week talking to kids that were sort of peer tutors in this or peer-to-peer counselors. And it's sort of giving someone the confidence, the independence, and the knowledge that they need to be able to say no. Because I mean, in middle school and high school, peer pressure is a heck of a thing. Um, and it's gotten so more complicated. I laugh, I'm telling stories just about my middle son the whole time, but he literally said the other day in the car, he goes, Oh, life used to be so simple. I was like, dude, you're eight. I was like, what are you talking about? But it's true. I mean, with all of these technological advances that are going on right now, um there's just so many different ways that they can get at these children. And so we've really got to focus on how do we get our kids to know what a threat in a dangerous situation looks like, and then how to say no. And keep saying no. And I think that's the long term solution. That's really the long term solution is prevention.
