Building on Past Experience: Making the Case for DEA

This presentation highlights the history of challenges DEA overcame as it made the case for a stand-alone agency for drug law enforcement. Four times in U.S. history, serious proposals were made to have DEA merged into the FBI. Retired DEA Assistant Administrator David Westrate leads the discussion with former DEA Administrators, including Peter Bensinger, Francis “Bud” Mullen, and Robert Bonner; retired Deputy Administrator Steve Greene; and former and current DEA employees involved in those efforts. The panelists recall how DEA made the case each time, and what lessons still apply today.