What might a Vice President JD Vance mean for criminal justice reform and drug policy?
I mention Senator Vance’s age in part because I think his relative youth makes him relatively more likely to be supportive of criminal justice reform. He was literally a child in the “tough on crime” political era of the 1980s and early 1990s. But, of course, age does not define perspective, and he seems to have said relatively little about crime and punishment issues (beyond immigration) in his political rise. Interestingly, the issue section of his 2022 Senate campaign website has a paragraph headed “Combat Drug and Opioid Epidemic” that concludes this way:
I’ll work to tackle the drug epidemic, eliminate the drugs coming into our community, and help those devastated by addiction. America is a country of second chances, and I’m proud to say that people in my own family have struggled with addiction for a decade before coming out on the other side of it. We need to ensure more second chances for Ohioans from all walks of life.
Talk of “second chances” is often heard from criminal justice reforms advocates, though here Senator Vance seems to be focused on those struggling with drug addition. (But, of course, many folks struggling with opioid and other drug addictions are often violating various criminal laws.)
Speaking of drugs and drug policy, I think Senator Vance’s history with tech billionaire Peter Thiel is notable in this context. This Forbes piece discusses some of the history:
Billionaire PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel was a big supporter of Vance during his Senate run, donating about $15 million — the largest amount ever to boost an individual Senate candidate, according to Politico — to support Vance, who said in March Thiel is “a very fascinating and knowledgeable person” he likes to bounce ideas off of.
A one-time Thiel employee, Vance rose to prominence in 2016 when his memoir chronicling the social, economic and cultural effects of manufacturing’s decline in the Ohio town he grew up in, “Hillbilly Elegy,” was released.
Though I do not follow the drug reform investing space closely, I believe Peter Thiel has actively invested in marijuana reform companies and vocally supported legalization. I also think he has invested in psychedilic therapy business and a pro-doping version of the Olympics. I suspect Senator Vance has and will continue to distance himself from some of Thier’s views, but I also suspect anyone bringing more of a free-market view on drugs into a future Trump Administration could shake up federal drug policy.
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