Jim Webb Puts His Writerly Skills to Work in a Modest Proposal: Reform The Nation's Prisons
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Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, better known by the acronym LEAP -- a group of current and former law enforcement officers -- is running a petition on its Internet site in support of Webb's commission. The petition and a video of Webb appear beneath the group's signature pitch: photos of Al Capone ("Alcohol Smuggler") and Pablo Escobar ("Drug Cartel"), accompanied by the line, "Same problem . . . same solution. Repeal Prohibition Now!"LEAP's Norman Stamper, a former chief of police in Seattle, praises Webb as "a tough guy" and says "the hope is that an honest, very critical examination of drug laws will lead to the conclusion that prohibition doesn't work."
Little public opposition has emerged, though that might have more to do with the bill's uncertain status than anything else. In the meantime, Webb says he's been contacted about his proposal by the president and Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, both of whom gave encouraging signals. And he is quietly amassing an eclectic band of supporters, ranging from the influential -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada -- to the surprising -- conservative Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. On board, too, is Nolan, a former California state lawmaker who did time in the 1990s for racketeering. Nolan sees Webb's commission as a way to steer drug offenders to treatment facilities, rather than warehousing them in prisons.
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