Released on: March 20, 2008, 10:26 am

Press Release Author: Arbor Books

Industry: Government

Press Release Summary: PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES AND THE DRUG EPIDEMIC: WHERE DO THEY
STAND?


Press Release Body: (OAK RIDGE, NJ)-The presidential campaign is in full swing, and
while you'll hear Clinton, Obama and McCain talking endlessly about Iraq,
healthcare, abortion and illegal immigration, does anyone really know where they
stand on the "war on drugs"?



"It's not something they really focus on," says Stephen Della Valle, author of the
new recovery memoir Rising Above the Influence, "and that's a shame. Like typical
politicians, they keep talking about the 'hot button' issues while one of the
biggest problems facing America today goes largely undiscussed."



Though each of the candidates has their own ideas and opinions on drug and alcohol
abuse in America, they don't often get the opportunity to talk about them in public
venues. "People are understandably more interested in what a potential new president
will do about the troops in Iraq, and what their feelings are on the country's
current immigration policies," says Mr. Della Valle. "But addiction is a topic that
can't be ignored any longer. They need to talk about it-and we the people need to
listen."



Statements that the presidential candidates have made on drug abuse prevention-and
punishment-include:

--Giving first-time nonviolent offenders the opportunity to serve their time in
rehab instead of prison (Obama)

--Increasing penalties for selling drugs, including death sentences for kingpins and
international traffickers (McCain)

-- Strengthening current laws on non-controlled substances including inhalants and
prescription medications (McCain)

--Instituting "drug courts" wherein low-level offenders who agree to stay clean and
submit to drug tests every week can stay out of the system (Clinton)

--Reduce recidivism by offering job training and substance abuse counseling to
ex-offenders (Obama)

Currently, 260,000 Americans are incarcerated in state prisons due to nonviolent
drug charges. On top of that, 85,000 Americans die from alcohol-related problems
every year-and another 17,000 from illicit drug use. "It's time for a politician to
step up and shine a spotlight on the ever-evolving epidemic of drug and alcohol
abuse in the US," Mr. Della Valle says in light of these statistics, "and do
something to help prevent it."

Stephen Della Valle is president of the board of directors at Turning Point
rehabilitation center in Verona, New Jersey. Currently celebrating twenty years of
sobriety, he lives in Oak Ridge, New Jersey, with his wife, Donna. He has three
children.


Rising Above the Influence is available now (ISBN: 0-9801776-0-X; softcover; Oak
Ridge Press) on Amazon.com, Borders.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and at fine bookstores
everywhere.





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Contact Details: Olga Vladi
Arbor Books Inc.
877-822-2500
info@arborbooks.com
www.arborbooks.com