Based on a 1985 survey taken by the National Institute on Drug Abuse which asked respondents if they had used the drug in the month just passed, a total of 113.1 million had used alcohol, 18.2 million had used marijuana, 5.8 million had used cocaine, and 2.7 million had used stimulants. One article from the New York Times reports that although the effects of illegal drugs were severe in 1986, experts report the problem had been bad for decades. A major question is why drugs are now receiving such attention. On one level, it is the new and potent form of cocaine called crack that is permeating urban neighborhoods. Other factors are the approach of congressional elections and an anti- drug and anti-alcohol sentiment that has been gathering strength since the early 1980's. At the White House, officials say that opinion polls and reports from communities across the country have created new pressure through the late spring to give the drug issue a higher priority. A concern among some politicians is that the issue has reached a high priority among the public, but the issue of how to counter drug abuse has not been adequately debated. Policies are thus devised too quickly so as to respond expediently to public pressure without adequately assessing the problem and alternative responses.