Chris Christie Makes Moving Speech About Treating Drug Addiction (Video)

At a campaign event, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie shared painful personal experiences to explain how the US needs to change its views on drug addiction.

According to Huffington Post, the Republican presidential hopeful was at Shooter's Tavern in New Hampshire when he made the speech recorded as part of the HuffPost series "'16 and President."

He discussed how his mother smoked cigarettes despite knowing they were harmful and was later diagnosed with lung cancer and eventually died.

Christie explained because she was addicted to nicotine and not heroin or alcohol no one said,

She got what she deserves.

He said this distinction isn't fair as any drug addict deserves sympathy and treatment as opposed to shame and jail time.

He also noted addiction can happen to anybody, even those with seemingly perfect lives.

Christie's plea echoes that of Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, minister of Ireland's National Drugs Strategy. On Monday, Ríordáin announced Ireland will open clinics where addicts can do drugs without punishment, and the country plans on decriminalizing possessing small amounts of several drugs.

Citations: Chris Christie Makes Emotional Plea To Rethink Drug Addiction Treatment (Huffington Post)