Trump wants capital punishment for drug dealers

washington - US President Donald Trump wants to introduce the death penalty for major drug dealers. According to the White House, this measure is in a plan to tackle the drug crisis in the US. Trump presents the plan Monday in New Hampshire, a state that is facing a major drug problem.

Drug use in the US has increased considerably in recent years. In 2016, more than 40,000 Americans died of an overdose, five times as many as in 1999. Opiates, such as heroin and morphine, are especially problematic. Trump therefore also wants doctors to prescribe this type of narcotics less often. In three years time, according to him, the number of recipes should drop by a third.

Trump has often said that drug dealers should receive the death penalty, but this is the first time this policy has been taken up.

A White House spokesperson said to journalists on Sunday evening that the Ministry of Justice 'will seek the death penalty against drug traffickers, if that is appropriate under current law. 'According to Trump, individual dealers sometimes have thousands of deaths on their conscience.

The US Congress recently released six billion dollars to fight the drug crisis. Trump wants to use this money for, among other things, prevention and information through a large-scale advertising campaign and to help addicts find work.