It's not surprising -- given that some guy named Ronald Reagan addressed this year's Democratic Convention, and that Republican conventioneers cheered Democratic Sen. Zell Miller -- to find that the drug-policy statements contained in the respective party platforms are markedly similar. Both parties, for instance, promise increased support for anti-drug efforts in South America and stepped-up drug testing, treatment, and drug education for kids.

See if you can pick which platform is which. [Note: Excerpts don't necessarily follow in succession as below.]

#1:

We will attack the exploding opium trade ignored by the Bush Administration by doubling our counter-narcotics assistance to the Karzai Government and reinvigorating the regional drug control program.

We will increase efforts to combat drug-trafficking throughout the Caribbean and ensure that those involved in bringing drugs into the U.S. are brought to justice.

We will crack down on the gang violence and drug crime that devastate so many communities, and we will increase drug treatment, including mandatory drug courts and mandatory drug testing for parolees and probationers, so fewer crimes are committed in the first place.

Education requires the engagement of the whole community in order to teach the whole child. Students should learn responsibility in our schools, and students who are irresponsible-using drugs or bringing violence into schools-must face strict discipline. We should support character education in our elementary and secondary schools and community service as a condition of graduation from high schools.

#2

Our Party believes that the United States must continue to support the democracies of South America with strong economic and security assistance. We therefore endorse the increased support that the President and the Republican Congress have provided to Colombia in the fight against narco-terrorists, in the eradication of coca and poppy crops, and in the interdiction of illicit drugs and the extradition of criminals. We also support the Bush Administration's active strategy to help the Andean nations adjust their economies, enforce their laws, defeat terrorist organizations, and cut off the supply of illegal drugs.

Promoting Drug-Free Communities

Drug abuse and addiction ruin lives. There can be no debate about it. Every adult has a responsibility to teach children about the dangers of drugs - in terms of both physical harm and potential death, as well as lost opportunities for success. After witnessing eight years of Presidential inaction on the war against drugs during the prior Administration, we applaud President Bush for his steady commitment to reducing drug use among teens. The Administration recently exceeded its two-year goal of reducing drug use among young people. The most recent survey shows an 11 percent drop between 2001 and 2003 in the use of illicit drugs by teenagers. Among teens, some drugs -- such as LSD -- have dropped to record-low levels of use. For other drugs, we are seeing the lowest levels of use in almost a decade.

To continue this progress, we must ensure that jail time is used as an effective deterrent to drug use and support the continued funding of grants to assist schools in drug testing. At the same time, we should make drug treatment available to people willing to take the courageous step of admitting they have a problem and working hard to overcome it. The President's Access to Recovery (ATR) program is giving individuals seeking drug treatment expanded access to effective providers through a new voucher program.

We oppose school-based mental health programs that include recommendations for the use of psychotropic drugs.

OK, so that wasn't so hard. The Dems attack "the exploding opium trade ignored by the Bush Administration" and the GOP praises "the increased support that the President and the Republican Congress have provided to Colombia."

Read the full agendas of the donkeys and elephants here.

[Thanks to colleague Nikos Leverenz -- who also points out that neither platform mentions marijuana -- for the heads up.]