Friday, February 06, 2009

Is it Over Yet?

The DEA has continued to raid medical marijuana dispensaries in California since President Obama took office. We know Obama has stated the he does not support using justice department resources to undermine state law on this issue. Yet the DEA continues to waste these resources on law abiding, tax paying dispensaries.

There is light at the end of the tunnel. Actually, its more like already having half your body out of the tunnel while DEA agents are wasting your own tax dollars to pull you back in.

Yesterday, the White House issued a statement explaining that we can expect these raids to end once President Obama nominates a new DEA Administrator.
“The president believes that federal resources should not be used to circumvent state laws, and as he continues to appoint senior leadership to fill out the ranks of the federal government, he expects them to review their policies with that in mind," White House spokesman Nick Shapiro said.
This is a victory not just for California, but for 12 other states that have passed medical marijuana legislation.

The answer to my question is no, its not over yet. Stay persistent and continue writing letters to the editor and contacting your representatives. Be sure to sign and spread the word about our petition to stop the raids!

1 comment:

Pat Rogers said...

"Is it Over Yet?"

I sure hope not. This is a national policy change opportunity for reform.

People have told me that Obama has the discretionary power to order the DEA to stop the raids so if he puts someone in at DEA who stops them, eventually, it supposedly will not be a legal problem. I have a hard time with that on two points. One is that I believe that no politician can order law enforcement to stop ongoing investigations. Two is that even if he can do it on some technical basis I don't see the Republicans letting a DEA or permanent Drug Czar nominee dance through their hearings without a tough round about whether or not they will enforce the laws.

So, I think the opportunity comes from this in that there is a way for the administration to pass the buck back to congress without losing credits in the reform community. We need to work up a campaign to push Barney Frank's two marijuana decrim bills, HR 5842 and HR 5843.

I wrote about these points on my blog, Aid & comfort. President Obama's Medical Marijuana Quandary