The War on Drugs if Reagan was elected in 1968 or 1976

Would it have been less intense than OTL's War on Drugs became during Reagan's Presidency, or would OTL's War on Drugs happen whenever Reagan got into the White House?
 
Well Nixon started the War on Drugs, so not sure about that one.

Reagan was a big supporter of it, partially, because it was very popular among GOP supporters and whites in general. Without one in place, who knows if he would have even done it. I think it is a distinct possibility though.
 
Well Nixon started the War on Drugs, so not sure about that one.

Reagan was a big supporter of it, partially, because it was very popular among GOP supporters and whites in general. Without one in place, who knows if he would have even done it. I think it is a distinct possibility though.

October 1967 Life Magazine
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My guess is we see a militarized approach to it, which due to the fact it doesn't incorporate treatment at all like nixon's OTL approach/to a lesser extent later presidents' approaches OTL means it gets unpopular say at least 12 years earlier.

Reagan in 1976 imo is closer to OTL, but the difference is just moving drug law policy shifts say 8 years ahead of OTL. 8 and not 4 since a less successful reagonomics means less ah popularity for his legacy overall, so you move it into the 2000s.
 
Crack and freebase won't be a thing yet, so perhaps powder cocaine is more harshly dealt with? [ Imagining a massive DEA raid on Studio 54, everyone including Andy Warhol dragged out in cuffs. ]
 
California was the heart of the counterculture. Whether or not the role of drugs was exaggerated in reports, Reagan became governor in 1967. Sure, California may have been ahead the rest of the country when it outlawed LSD in 1966, two years before the federal ban. But nobody reported a war on drugs in Reagan's California.
 

samcster94

Banned
My guess is we see a militarized approach to it, which due to the fact it doesn't incorporate treatment at all like nixon's OTL approach/to a lesser extent later presidents' approaches OTL means it gets unpopular say at least 12 years earlier.

Reagan in 1976 imo is closer to OTL, but the difference is just moving drug law policy shifts say 8 years ahead of OTL. 8 and not 4 since a less successful reagonomics means less ah popularity for his legacy overall, so you move it into the 2000s.
A late 70's Reagan would probably be less successful and be a one termer.
 
Reagan should have been a one-termer OTL going by his performance 1981-on in general, but his shtick played well enough to not only be reelected in 1984 but win almost every state OTL.
 
Reagan should have been a one-termer OTL going by his performance 1981-on in general, but his shtick played well enough to not only be reelected in 1984 but win almost every state OTL.
Reagan's inauguaration coincided with the release of the hostages and his first term coincided with the economy improving. Both of those were a matter of being elected at the right time.
 
California was the heart of the counterculture. Whether or not the role of drugs was exaggerated in reports, Reagan became governor in 1967. Sure, California may have been ahead the rest of the country when it outlawed LSD in 1966, two years before the federal ban. But nobody reported a war on drugs in Reagan's California.

Then again, Reagan was a pretty liberal governor (abortion decriminalized, support for the environment, etc) largely because the California legislature was controlled by liberals. But that was hardly indicative of how Reagan actually governed as President in the 1980's.
 
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