Obama: Reneges on campaign promises, in public reversal on Federal MMJ policy.

Even Rolling Stone Magazine has noticed that Obama has made a rather public about-face on this issue.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/obamas-war-on-pot-20120216

Obama's War on Pot

In a shocking about-face, the administration has launched a government-wide crackdown on medical marijuana






Comment 95



By Tim Dickinson
February 16, 2012 9:55 AM ET


President Barack Obama
Alex Wong/Getty Images



Back when he was running for president in 2008, Barack Obama insisted that medical marijuana was an issue best left to state and local governments. "I'm not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws on this issue," he vowed, promising an end to the Bush administration's high-profile raids on providers of medical pot, which is legal in 16 states and the District of Columbia.


But over the past year, the Obama administration has quietly unleashed a multi*agency crackdown on medical cannabis that goes far beyond anything undertaken by George W. Bush. The feds are busting growers who operate in full compliance with state laws, vowing to seize the property of anyone who dares to even rent to legal pot dispensaries, and threatening to imprison state employees responsible for regulating medical marijuana. With more than 100 raids on pot dispensaries during his first three years, Obama is now on pace to exceed Bush's record for medical-marijuana busts. "There's no question that Obama's the worst president on medical marijuana," says Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project. "He's gone from first to worst."

The federal crackdown imperils the medical care of the estimated 730,000 patients nationwide – many of them seriously ill or dying – who rely on state-sanctioned marijuana recommended by their doctors. In addition, drug experts warn, the White House's war on law-abiding providers of medical marijuana will only drum up business for real criminals. "The administration is going after legal dispensaries and state and local authorities in ways that are going to push this stuff back underground again," says Ethan Nadelmann, director of the Drug Policy Alliance. Gov. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, a former Republican senator who has urged the DEA to legalize medical marijuana, pulls no punches in describing the state of affairs produced by Obama's efforts to circumvent state law: "Utter chaos.


Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/obamas-war-on-pot-20120216#ixzz1mfULwemb

I cant wait until he sues the state governments for their lists of users and legal dispensaries so that he can send the feds in to arrest everyone.

One of the reasons having medical MJ legal at the state level but not at the federal level is a joke.

It's one of about 30 promises he made before elected and has reneged on........ all he knows how to do is say one thing and do something else. This guy has admitted to smoking pot and trying cocaine too. Shame on him!

NLXSK1 said:

I cant wait until he sues the state governments for their lists of users and legal dispensaries so that he can send the feds in to arrest everyone.

One of the reasons having medical MJ legal at the state level but not at the federal level is a joke.

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I don't think he even could do that if he wanted to (he's going to violate HIPA an subpoena every patient's medical records in multiple States?), but I don't see why he would want to.

The political pushback associated with trying to make criminals out of tens of thousands of sick Americans would be massive and overwhelming. As the article states, in places like Colorado, MMJ is more popular than Obama himself is!

But yeah. . .reversing his stance on MMJ is one of a rather long list of things candidate Obama promised that President Obama didn't deliver (eg not raising taxes on people earning under $250k per year, closing Guantanamo bay, not making "signing statements" when signing bills, cutting the budget, etc, etc, etc).

On State vs. Federal MJ, I don't want to turn this into a diatribe about Federalism and the role of the Federal gov't, but the fact is that the Federal gov't bans lots of things that are (or should be) legal at the State level. This doesn't rest entirely, or even mostly at the feet of Obama, either.

Ultimately, MJ legalization isn't up to the President. As chief executive, the POTUS has the ability to direct Federal law enforcement not to enforce certain laws, but he does NOT enjoy the ability to legalize MJ. The Congress passed the anti-drug laws and only the Congress can reverse them. As a matter of practice, Congress isn't going to reform cannabis law until and unless a majority of US States do so first. I mean if even California can't "legalize it" via simple popular vote (prop 19 failed just recently), then why should anyone expect a coalition of States including socially conservative ones like Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, etc, to support this?

Right now there are 16 states that have some sort of MMJ programs or decriminalization. When that number doubles, we may see action on a Federal level, and this could conceivably happen over the next 10-15 years. Don't hold your breath for it to happen under either a second term of Obama (if he's lucky enough to get one), or under a Romney/Gingrich/Santorum administration. None of the latter three have indicated any willingness to change the status quo on Federal cannabis drug policy, and in fact, I think all of them have indicated the contrary.

Despite all this, I think State MJ legalization/decriminalization is still pretty helpful for a number of reasons.

The biggest one, of course, is that realistically, you're much more likely to be arrested or prosecuted for drug possession/cultivation on a State level than on a Federal one. Having immunity from State prosecution is a huge benefit if you need to use MJ as a drug, or even if you're just a recreational user.

Next, State legalization provides a model for Federal decriminalization. If CA can make oodles of tax money and provide lots of jobs in MMJ, without associated social pathology, then it appears much more reasonable that it could also be done on a Federal level. As another issue, having State programs in place to dispense and control MJ "normalizes" it. The more visible these things are, the more the "average schmoe" voter who does NOT smoke MJ sees that the stuff isn't that harmful. There is a positive feedback effect on public perception, and eventually the Federal laws will reflect the popular sentiment.

Yup 0bama is a true political whore... He'll say anything to get elected....
Just look how he duped the blags and fags into voting for him.
Wake up Amerika

Obama is suing the state of Arizona over immigration policy.

He is forcing the catholic church and/or insurers to provide mandatory free contraception.

His wife has burecrats digging through 4 year old kids lunches telling them that mommy cannot make the proper nutrition decisions for them.

Dont think he is above attempting to breach American citizens privacy and go after ever dispensary, dispensary worker etc. if one of his Czars gets an itch...

And this is supposed to surprise anyone? We've known for 3 years that Obama speaks out of one side of his mouth and and let's Socialism and a love for Islam drool out of the other side.

witness the obama derangement syndrome in full effect as he easily wins news cycle after news cycle with precious few days left until the election and the GOP falling apart at the seams, chasing their tails and grasping at straws while the economy slowly improves.

i'm grabbing some popcorn and a beer, i will be playing a drinking game and already owe lopezri two drinks for mentioning socialism and islam.

quick, now someone say "kenyan".

LOL!

Your favorite Kenyan, Unclebuck!

""The administration is going after legal dispensaries and state and local authorities in ways that are going to push this stuff back underground again," says Ethan Nadelmann, director of the Drug Policy Alliance. Gov. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, a former Republican senator who has urged the DEA to legalize medical marijuana, pulls no punches in describing the state of affairs produced by Obama's efforts to circumvent state law: "Utter chaos."

NLXSK1 said:

I cant wait until he sues the state governments for their lists of users and legal dispensaries so that he can send the feds in to arrest everyone.

One of the reasons having medical MJ legal at the state level but not at the federal level is a joke.

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you can't wait untill he arrests us?

This is not new information, Obama worshipers are in their usual state of denial about this and other anti-human actions of Obama the worst civil rights president of all time.

The dumbest generation...

deprave said:

...Obama the worst civil rights president of all time.

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lol.

issue the holder memo, sign the lilly ledbetter fair pay act, get rid of DADT and stop enforcing DOMA...just details.

obama derangement syndrome.

UncleBuck said:

lol.

issue the holder memo, sign the lilly ledbetter fair pay act, get rid of DADT and stop enforcing DOMA...just details.

obama derangement syndrome.

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Just a smattering of Obama's "accomplishments", courtesy of Obama's deranged voters.


http://reason.com/blog/2012/02/17/the-dumbest-generation

Wasn't he ordered to appear in court and just FTA'd? Precedent or President?

UncleBuck said:

lol.

issue the holder memo, sign the lilly ledbetter fair pay act, get rid of DADT and stop enforcing DOMA...just details.

obama derangement syndrome.

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New avatar, I almost didn't recognize you

stop changing them people..

The Obummer admin has doubled the deficit which means that the US govt now spends the equivalent of each and every taxpayer having to pay 150k a year a piece.
Remember Solyndra and Fast and Furious. Then google Obama/young (if that is still out there?) Like Gangus Gingrich has redirected all his youtube dog fucking videos to himself sucking off the statue of liberty.

Mitch Daniels is a poopy-head:

i like turtles.

Obama said:

I'm not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws on this issue.

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lies

Obama said:

I want to clarify that my administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens.

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Uh oh.