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People in recovery from substance use hope to change the political landscape by running for office

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Thomas Higdon was a politics fanatic his entire life: He kept up on the news cycle, he door-knocked for candidates, and he volunteered for a number of campaigns. 

He long dreamed of working in government, but he and everyone around him felt it wouldn’t be possible because of his substance use. His use of alcohol and other drugs began causing problems when he was in law school in the mid-1990s, and in 2014, the consequences of his substance use left him living under an overpass. He is now abstinent from the drugs, but even years later, he felt he had ruined his chances of running for office. 

“I allowed this internalized stigma, over decades, to blind me to what I could really do,” Higdon, now 52, told CBS News. 

That thought stayed with him for years. He moved into grassroots organizing and advocacy spaces, but in 2023, he learned about the Recovery Advocacy Project’s upcoming “Run for Recovery” program — and realized that working in public office might still be possible. 

Building a political bootcamp for people in recovery 

Courtney Gary-Allen, who began using drugs at a young age and overdosed multiple times before getting sober in 2015, has successfully run for office twice. In 2020, she was elected to the position of at-large City Councilor in Augusta, Maine. She was reelected to the same role in 2023. Both times, she won in a landslide, but the experience made her realize the need for a campaign bootcamp centered around people in recovery. Similar bootcamps are conducted by major political parties, but she wanted to create a bipartisan space tailored to the recovery community’s specific experiences and needs. 


How harm reduction seeks to help those dealing with addiction

03:35

“For the last decade or so, the recovery movement in America has been very focused on telling our stories and advocating and pushing for better policy around substance use disorder and recovery efforts, and I think this is a new chapter in the story of the recovery advocacy movement,” said Gary-Allen, who is also the organizing director at the Maine Advocacy Recovery Project. “We’re no longer just advocating to policymakers. We are running for office to become the policymakers that are making decisions around these issues and many more.” 

From that idea, Run for Recovery was born. The program graduated its inaugural class, made up of five Democrats, five Republicans, and five Independents, in August 2024. The 15 participants were selected from across the country. Once a month for a year, they met online to talk the ins and outs of mounting a campaign. Lessons ranged from learning about finance laws to drafting position statements to preparing to talk openly about their substance abuse. 

Higdon was one of the selected participants. Even though he had “been around campaigns all (his) life,” he said the Run for Recovery class educated him about the technicalities of running for office. But it wasn’t just the classroom learning that inspired him. When he started the class, “there was still that sort of nagging voice in the back of your head of ‘You can’t run,'” Higdon said. The time with his classmates helped change his perspective. 

“I just can’t express how good it felt to be around people who also wanted to do this thing,” Higdon said. “There are a number of reasons why I ultimately may not run, but fear of what people will say and that stigma won’t be one of them.” 

Mobilize Recovery founder Ryan Hampton, who completed the Run for Recovery program and is campaigning for a seat in Nevada’s state assembly, said that stigma has affected his campaign. He said his campaign has been subject to attack ads bringing up his history of substance use and calling his policy positions to a “dangerous drug agenda.” 

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Ryan Hampton, center, and supporters on the campaign trail.

Ryan Hampton


It’s a stressful time, Hampton said, but lessons he’s learned throughout his recovery journey and from the Run for Recovery program have helped him continue his campaign. 

“I am certainly the underdog in this race, but I’m used to it,” Hampton said. “Am I afraid of losing an election? No, I have lost a lot more in my life than an election. I am not afraid of losing. I’m running to win, but I’m also running because I believe our community is yearning for something different.” 

Growing a movement

There’s no compiled list of every single person in recovery running for office. Gary-Allen said she was aware of several people in recovery running for office in Maine. Higdon is weighing a run for a seat in Maryland’s state legislature. Racquel Garcia, a Run for Recovery graduate who holds an appointed position in Colorado, is considering a campaign for a state position in 2026. 

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Courtney Gary-Allen (left) on the campaign trail in 2023. To her right is Jon Reynolds, a person in recovery running for a school board position in Maine this year. 

Courtney Gary-Allen


Gary-Allen said she hopes to see more of the Run for Recovery program graduates start their own campaigns — and see others in recovery, even people who didn’t go through the program, make the jump into politics. 

“I think we’re on this cusp of a revelation. Not only are people in recovery voting and showing up and advocating, we’re running for office, and we’re going to serve in these seats,” Gary-Allen said. “We’re going to help create solutions to substance use across the country. I’m excited for the next couple of election seasons.” 



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Israeli strike kills Lebanese soldier as Hezbollah fires at least 185 rockets at Israel

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Hezbollah fired at least 185 rockets and other projectiles into Israel on Sunday, wounding seven people in the militant group’s heaviest barrage in several days, in response to deadly Israeli strikes in Beirut while negotiators pressed on with cease-fire efforts to halt the war.

Meanwhile, an Israeli strike on a Lebanese army center killed one soldier and wounded 18 others on the southwestern coastal road between Tyre and Naqoura, Lebanon’s military said. Israel’s military expressed regret and said the strike occurred in an area of combat against Hezbollah, adding that its operations are directed solely against the militants. The strike was under review.

Lebanon Israel
Rescue workers search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike that hit central Beirut, Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024.

Hussein Malla / AP


Israeli strikes have killed over 40 Lebanese troops since the start of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, even as Lebanon’s military has largely kept to the sidelines.

Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, condemned it as an assault on U.S.-led cease-fire efforts, calling it a “direct, bloody message rejecting all efforts and ongoing contacts” to end the war.

“(Israel is) again writing in Lebanese blood a brazen rejection of the solution that is being discussed,” a statement from his office read.

The strike occurred in southwestern Lebanon on the coastal road between Tyre and Naqoura, where there has been heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Hezbollah began firing rockets, missiles and drones into Israel after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack out of the Gaza Strip ignited the war there. Hezbollah has portrayed the attacks as an act of solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas. Iran supports both armed groups.

Israel has launched retaliatory airstrikes since the rocket fire began, and in September the low-level conflict erupted into all-out war, as Israel launched waves of airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon and killed Hezbollah’s top leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and several of his top commanders.

Hezbollah fired a total of around 160 rockets and other projectiles into Israel on Sunday, some of which were intercepted, the Israeli military said.

Israel Lebanon
Israeli police bomb squad inspect the site after a missile fired from Lebanon hit the area in Petah Tikva, outskirts of Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday Nov. 24, 2024.

Oded Balilty / AP


Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said it was treating two people in the central city of Petah Tikva, a 23-year-old man who was lightly wounded by a blast and a 70-year-old woman suffering from smoke inhalation from a car that caught fire. The first responders said they treated three other people in northern Israel, closer to the border, including a 60-year-old man in serious condition.

It was unclear whether the injuries and damage were caused by the rockets or interceptors.

Israeli airstrikes early Saturday pounded central Beirut, killing at least 20 people and wounding 66, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

Israeli attacks have killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. The fighting has displaced about 1.2 million people, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population.

On the Israeli side, about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed by bombardments in northern Israel and in battle following Israel’s ground invasion in early October. Around 60,000 Israelis have been displaced from the country’s north.

The Biden administration has spent months trying to broker a cease-fire, and U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein was back in the region last week.


U.S. envoy says there is “real opportunity” to end fighting between Israel, Hezbollah

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The European Union’s top diplomat called for more pressure on both Israel and Hezbollah to reach a deal, saying one was “pending with a final agreement from the Israeli government.”

Josep Borrell spoke Sunday after meeting with Mikati and Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally who has been mediating with the group.

Borrell said the EU is ready to allocate 200 million euros ($208m) to assist the Lebanese military, which would deploy additional forces to the south.

The emerging agreement would pave the way for the withdrawal of Hezbollah militants and Israeli troops from southern Lebanon below the Litani River in accordance with the U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the 2006 war. Lebanese troops would patrol the area, with the presence of U.N. peacekeepers.

Lebanon’s army reflects the religious diversity of the country and is respected as a national institution, but it does not have the military capability to impose its will on Hezbollah or resist Israel’s invasion.



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Sen. Rand Paul says he “will not support” use of military in Trump’s planned deportations

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Sen. Rand Paul says he “will not support” use of military in Trump’s planned deportations – CBS News


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Republican Sen. Rand Pual of Kentucky tells “Face the Nation” that while he supports President-elect Donald Trump’s plans for mass deportation, but through the “normal process of domestic policing.” “I will not support and will not vote to use the military in our cities,” Paul said.

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Transcript: Rep.-elect Sarah McBride on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Nov. 24, 2024

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The following is a transcript of an interview with Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, Democrat of Delaware, on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that aired on Nov. 24, 2024.


MARGARET BRENNAN: The 2024 election was historic for several reasons. Among them, the first openly transgender person was elected to the United States Congress. She joins us now from the state she will be representing, Delaware. Democratic Representative-elect Sarah McBride. Welcome to Face the Nation.

REP.-ELECT SARAH MCBRIDE: Thank you for having me, Margaret.

MARGARET BRENNAN: You know, it’s interesting, given how polarized, how angry and divided this country is that people choose to serve and to run. You told my colleague Scott MacFarlane that it was your personal experience as a caregiver for your husband during his bout with terminal cancer that inspired you to run. Do you expect that health care policy will be the focus of your work here?

: Well, I certainly am glad to be back here in Delaware after two weeks of orientation and to have the privilege of serving this state that I love in Congress. I ran to bring down costs facing workers, retirees and their families. That means bringing down the cost of health care, but also housing and child care and everyday expenses like gas and groceries. I did run for office after my experience as a caregiver to my husband, Andy, during his battle with cancer. And throughout that experience, while Andy ultimately lost his life, we both knew how lucky we were. We knew how lucky Andy was to have health insurance that would allow him to get care that would hopefully save his life. And we both knew how lucky we were to have flexibility with our employers. That allowed Andy to focus on the full time job of getting care, and me to focus on the full time job of being there by his side to care for him, to love him, to marry him, and to walk him to his passing. And I ran for office because I do not believe that in the wealthiest, most developed nation on earth, that that time and that ability to get care should be a matter of luck. I believe it should be the law of the land. And it’s why during my time in the Delaware General Assembly, I passed paid family and medical leave and secured the largest investment in our state’s Medicaid program. And I want to do that work in Congress on health care, but also on housing and child care. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Paid leave is something that Mr. Trump has paid lip service to, we’ll see in the new Congress if it comes up. We see in our CBS polling that 86% of voters feel congressional Democrats should find common ground with Mr. Trump and Republicans. Do you feel you can?

: Well, I said throughout this campaign that I will work with anyone who’s willing to work with me to help Delawareans, to lower costs facing my constituents. There are opportunities for us to find common ground. But it’s also clear that this administration, as it begins to fill its appointments with Project 2025 authors, that a lot of the policies that this president will pursue will likely hurt my constituents and raise prices. And so where I need to fight back, I will. But where I can find common ground, I will certainly seek it. That’s what I’ve done during my time in the General Assembly, where nearly every bill I passed passed with bipartisan support. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: As you mentioned, you were here for orientation. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was asked about you coming to work and some objections by a female South Carolina Republican representative regarding what bathroom you’d be able to use. Here’s what the speaker said.

SPEAKER MIKE JOHNSON (ON TAPE): A man is a man, and a woman is a woman, and a man cannot become a woman. That said, I also believe- that’s what Scripture teaches, what I just said. But I also believe that we treat everybody with dignity.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Do you believe that you are being treated with dignity by your colleagues?

: I didn’t run for the United States House of Representatives to talk about what bathroom I use. I didn’t run to talk about myself. I ran to deliver for Delawareans. And while Republicans in Congress seem focused on bathrooms and trans people, and specifically me, I’m focused on rolling up my sleeves, diving into the details, setting up my office, and beginning the hard work of delivering for Delawareans on the issues that I know keep them up at night. And I look forward to working with any colleague who’s ready to work and ready to be serious about the issues that matter because at the end of the day, how I’m being treated does not matter. What matters is how the American people are being treated and whether we’re actually focused on the issues that matter to them.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, some of your fellow congressional Democrats, including Tom Suozzi and Seth Moulton, have also recently spoken about their feelings, looking back at the last election, and said Democrats should be more open about saying whether they object to transgender athletes playing in girls sports. Those were the specific examples they brought up. How would you respond to your soon to be Democratic colleagues on those? Do you understand why some parents, for example, feel uncomfortable or frustrated?

: Look, I think this country is still entering into a conversation about who trans people are, the full diversity of the community. And I’ve had conversations with colleagues in the Democratic caucus already that- that span diversity of thought about how the party should engage on a whole host of issues. But I think we are all united that every single American deserves equal rights. I think we are all united that attempts to attack a vulnerable community are not only mean spirited, but really an attempt to misdirect. Because every single time we hear the incoming administration or Republicans in Congress talk about any vulnerable group in this country, we have to be clear that it is an attempt to distract. It is an attempt to distract from what they are actually doing. Every single time, every single time we hear them say the word trans, look what they’re doing with their right hand. Look at what they’re doing to pick the pocket of American workers, to fleece seniors by privatizing Social Security and Medicare. Look what they’re doing undermining workers. And here’s also what we have to be clear about, because I think the last week has been a prime example of this. Every bit of time and energy that is used to divert the attention of federal government to go after trans people is time and energy that is not focused on addressing the cost of living for our constituents. And we have to be clear that there is a real cost for the American worker every time they focus on this. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: All right. Congresswoman elect, I’m sure we’ll be seeing you here in Washington. We’ll be right back.



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