Obama Drug Czar: We will go after Marijuana Distributors in Wash. and Colo.

[MMC]

In an interview with Canadian news magazine Maclean’s last week, Gil Kerlikowske, President Obama’s Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, stated that despite recreational legalization in Washington and Colorado, they would still go after distributors and growers in both states.

"You’ll continue to see enforcement against distributors and large-scale growers as the Justice Department has outlined. They will use their limited resources on those groups and not on going after individual users," said Kerlikowske, who is also a former Seattle Police Chief.

In an interview with ABC News, soon after the November legalizations in Washington and Colorado, President Obama said, "We've got bigger fish to fry. It would not make sense for us to see a top priority as going after recreational users in states that have determined that it’s legal."
It is likely President Obama chose his words carefully by only mentioning individual users and not distributors or growers, despite many being led to believe there would be no federal interference at all within the two states.

At this time, it appears both Colorado and Washington will move forward with the legalization process. Washington state is currently accepting applications for newly created pot consultant positions with the Washington State Liquor Control Board.....snip~

Obama drug czar: We will go after marijuana distributors in Wash. and Colo. - Seattle Political Buzz | Examiner.com

Looks Like Obama's Drug Czar says he will be sending the Boyz around despite Colorado's and Washington's State Laws.

Better watch out for Undercover!

 

[Spartacus FPV]

So Obama is a liar, the Federal government does not respect the rights of the states and this stupid wasteful drug war will go on...

Not surprised.

 

[MMC]

So Obama is a liar, the Federal government does not respect the rights of the states and this stupid wasteful drug war will go on...

Not surprised.

Wonder if they will go after that Colorado Pot Club then?

 

[Thoreau72]

Yes, no surprise. More actions by Obama demonstrating what a fraud he is.

 

[MMC]

Yes, no surprise. More actions by Obama demonstrating what a fraud he is.

Yeah, I wonder how what that Colorado Governor is thinking? Don't forget those Central American Countries said they would have to review their policies over this legislation and that they called for a study. Think that may have caused Obama to cave?

 

[Helix]

the war on pot is a farce. it should be ended at the national level.

 

[Northern Light]

I'll say it again: marijuana is not the name of any plant species. It's called CANNABIS. Any time the government refers to it as marijuana it shows how ignorant they are.

Obama has flip flopped on this issue several times already. When he first came into office he told the DEA to back off of pot enforcement on States that have medical mandates. Then a couple years later he not only reversed his decision but called for more enforcement, and that resulted in hundreds of businesses in CA being raided by the DEA. You can bet your top dollar that some kind of lobby paid off Obama big time to change his mind.

Now he is saying that the government has bigger fish to fry than to go after CO/WA, but the people in both those States are well aware that they could start up businesses only to have them raided in a couple of years. Honestly, I think it's a Federal strategy to deliberately ease off for a while so the cannabis market can grow and the business owners expose themselves, only to initiate crackdowns later on.

We need to change the drug laws at the Federal level for the States to have any real protection. Right now cannabis is schedule 1 which is the same level as cocaine. Last year in a press conference, Michele Leonhart (head of the DEA) was asked if she personally believes cannabis is as harmful as cocaine, based on all available research. She refused to answer the question.

Federal law is no longer based on sound science. Reagan could have used the excuse that we didn't know enough about pot to warrant its decriminalization back when he was in office, but that excuse no longer stands. The DEA must be reformed. The laws that let government throw people in jail for long periods or have their homes and assets seized for drug offenses MUST be revoked.

 

[penn1954]

Do it just like alcohol legalize it, tax the h*** out of it and arrest if dwi !!!

 

[MMC]

I'll say it again: marijuana is not the name of any plant species. It's called CANNABIS. Any time the government refers to it as marijuana it shows how ignorant they are.

Obama has flip flopped on this issue several times already. When he first came into office he told the DEA to back off of pot enforcement on States that have medical mandates. Then a couple years later he not only reversed his decision but called for more enforcement, and that resulted in hundreds of businesses in CA being raided by the DEA. You can bet your top dollar that some kind of lobby paid off Obama big time to change his mind.

Now he is saying that the government has bigger fish to fry than to go after CO/WA, but the people in both those States are well aware that they could start up businesses only to have them raided in a couple of years. Honestly, I think it's a Federal strategy to deliberately ease off for a while so the cannabis market can grow and the business owners expose themselves, only to initiate crackdowns later on.

We need to change the drug laws at the Federal level for the States to have any real protection. Right now cannabis is schedule 1 which is the same level as cocaine. Last year in a press conference, Michele Leonhart (head of the DEA) was asked if she personally believes cannabis is as harmful as cocaine, based on all available research. She refused to answer the question.

Federal law is no longer based on sound science. Reagan could have used the excuse that we didn't know enough about pot to warrant its decriminalization back when he was in office, but that excuse no longer stands. The DEA must be reformed. The laws that let government throw people in jail for long periods or have their homes and assets seized for drug offenses MUST be revoked.

I agree with you and I also think the Fed is just waiting until all reveal themselves. Which then we will see them go after the larger producers and distributors.

 

[DouglasPocock]

When I was lobbying in Washington State, we were being "watched" by the DEA and the drug "czar".
Working so closely with the vast majority of dispensaries in Western Washington, I can tell you that there was no action that they have taken. If they were serious about assaulting State's rights, they had many opportunities to do so before real laws were made regarding the full legalization of marijuana.

Also, that thing someone said about how the government doesn't call marijuana, cannabis, is nonsense. They call it marijuana because the connotation of the word has been shown to have be more negative than cannabis, this is from a Washington State study based on voters with home phones. The government has chosen not to use cannabis because it is more scientific and therefore more "scientific/good" than marijuana that sounds "foreign/bad" to conservative voters.

Sources: I am a wordsmith for lobbyists and legislation.

 

[Paschendale]

All this nonsense will continue for a while, I'm sure. The federal government will assert sovereignty over the few states that legalize pot... until it's more than a few. Change has begun, and it won't stop until this is settled at the federal level. It will take more than one election day to change the nation, but I think it will happen. Get this on your ballots in 2014. Pass legalization in your state. Tip the scales and the federal government will have to change its stance.

 

[zhak]

Why doesn't the Govt. go after the Real Problem, the Drug Cartels crossing and sending drugs across our Borders, rather than flipflopping on legal distributors of MJ who have followed the protocol and done the legal paper work and licensing fees, My op, follow the money'

 

[MMC]

Just how much does a Pot Consultant job Pay.....in Washington State?

 

[AreteCourage]

Good luck trying to do all of that without state resources because there is no way the states will waste their money going after LEGAL practices.

 

[DA60]

The longer Obama is in office...the less intelligent he seems.

 

[Thoreau72]

Why doesn't the Govt. go after the Real Problem, the Drug Cartels crossing and sending drugs across our Borders, rather than flipflopping on legal distributors of MJ who have followed the protocol and done the legal paper work and licensing fees, My op, follow the money'

For several reasons.

1) Certain agencies in the government play both sides, and rogue agents within play and profit in the black market created by legislation.

2) Other agencies such as BOP and DEA depend very much on the existence of the prohibition for growth of their budgets. Indeed, without the prohibition, there would be virtually no need whatsoever for the DEA.

 

[Thoreau72]

The longer Obama is in office...the less intelligent he seems.

Less intelligent, or more corrupt?

 

[Federalist]

An unconstitutional act is no law at all, and there is no constitutional authority for a federal ban on marijuana inside any state.

The states need to interpose between their citizens and lawless federal agents, who ought to be regarded as criminals and treated as such by the states in which they attempt to kidnap state citizens.

 

[DA60]

Less intelligent, or more corrupt?

Less intelligent.

Hard to believe anybody can make the asinine mistakes this guy is making and actually be very intelligent.

Of course, the Fed is full of bright guys and when it comes to macroeconomics - those guys/gals are as dumb as posts.

 

[Surtr]

What did anyone expect? The federal government yields to no one regardless of whether it's good for that state, and its people, or not.

 

[VanceMack]

On the plus side...announcing the DOJ will be going after legal, licensed marijuana growers means that the DOJ may actually have a target that they know who they are, where they are, and can say who actually made the decisions to go after the people growing and distributing the substance (legally, and licensed by the states).

Maybe Ive missed it...have they been threatening and arrest legal growers and suppliers of medicinal marijuana in California?

 

[Vapor]

It takes a real hypocrite to smoke weed as a teenager, then pledge to move on cannabis legalization, and as president send people to prison for smoking weed. Makes it even worse that he won't even respect the rights of the states, seeking to preserve the "failed policies of the past" that he so loudly decried.

 

[MMC]

Still.....the Majority of Democrats say in a City Like Chicago and the State where it is Zero Tolerance. Have even begun to back off and or are changing existing laws over marijuana. Which the Demos are finally realizing the money they can gain by just fining people. Like here now they have changed the amount of Cannabis with what one can have on them, in order to be busted and go to jail over. But they did this also to free up Officers to concentrate on the gun violence.

See when it comes to money and knowing they can tap this area to pay off those spending habits of theirs. Then they are all for it. Still Indiana is Illinois' sister state. Which leans to the Right. But again Zero tolerance is in affect and they are not looking to change up any Cannabis laws. They will not hesitate to take one in for having a Seed in ones vehicle.

 

[Thoreau72]

Less intelligent.

Hard to believe anybody can make the asinine mistakes this guy is making and actually be very intelligent.

Of course, the Fed is full of bright guys and when it comes to macroeconomics - those guys/gals are as dumb as posts.

Even with Bush, I did not see it as a matter of intelligence, but rather as a matter of corruption. Though dyslexic and bumbling, Bush did precisely as he was told, and a particular agenda was advanced in the process. Obviously, by design of those instructing Bush.

While Barack is silver-tongued, and not dyslexic, neither is he stupid. Comparing IQ's, I suspect his exceeds Dubya.

The same agenda is advanced by Barack that was advanced by Dubya, whether drug policy, war policy, torture policy, bail out Wall Street Policy, or whatever other way one wishes to compare the 2 administrations.

Regarding drug policy, the status quo will be maintained, despite the protestations of the Colorado voters or any other group of voters. Just like Bill Clinton would have done if faced with the same.

It ain't pretty.

 

[DA60]

Even with Bush, I did not see it as a matter of intelligence, but rather as a matter of corruption. Though dyslexic and bumbling, Bush did precisely as he was told, and a particular agenda was advanced in the process. Obviously, by design of those instructing Bush.

While Barack is silver-tongued, and not dyslexic, neither is he stupid. Comparing IQ's, I suspect his exceeds Dubya.

The same agenda is advanced by Barack that was advanced by Dubya, whether drug policy, war policy, torture policy, bail out Wall Street Policy, or whatever other way one wishes to compare the 2 administrations.

Regarding drug policy, the status quo will be maintained, despite the protestations of the Colorado voters or any other group of voters. Just like Bill Clinton would have done if faced with the same.

It ain't pretty.

Is Obama intelligent? Sure.

But is he practically intelligent? No.

He clearly displays an inability to understand the world/America/society and his role in it.


As for drugs being illegal?

Like Prohibition - it will eventually end.

Making drugs illegal is staggeringly ignorant and immensely costly in both freedom and money.

Only someone with gigantic ignorance on the subject would be for making drugs illegal.

Unfortunately, that group encompasses a LOT of people.