Specter Would 'Absolutely' Use Medical Marijuana

[User]

U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) reportedly asserted that he would "absolutely" use medical marijuana to mitigate the effects of his cancer if Pennsylvania allowed it and if his doctor issued a prescription.

Mr. Specter had mentioned possibly sponsoring legislation years ago, after first learning of his ailment, to legalize marijuana for medical purposes.

He is reported to have also added that while he would use the substance if it were legalized, he did not endorse violating current law.

Federal law prohibits the prescription of the drug for medical purposes in any jurisdiction, although a few states have undertaken referenda to lift their own restrictions. The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) maintains that these ballot measures are illegal because they circumvent the federal drug approval process overseen by the Food and Drug Administration.

"Our view is that medicines that are made available to people who are sick and who are suffering should all undergo rigorous study to make sure that they're safe and effective," Rafael Lemaitre, spokesman for the ONDCP, told The Bulletin, adding that the effort to legalize medical marijuana "basically inserts politics in place of science."

Mr. Lemaitre said that medicines already exist in the marketplace to treat the eating difficulties and other effects of cancer and other diseases. Marinol, for example, contains THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the active ingredient in marijuana and is legally permitted.

He said that all off the ballot initiative campaigns have received their most crucial support and funding from groups who desire to legalize marijuana entirely.

"This is a campaign being mounted by political lobbying groups in Washington, D.C.," Mr. Lemaitre said.


News Hawk: User: http://www.420magazine.com/
Source: The Bulletin
Copyright: 2008 Townnews.com
Contact: The Bulletin - Philadelphia's Family Newspaper
Website: Specter Would 'Absolutely' Use Medical Marijuana

[bill704]

This is great news to hear for us in PA.

[bill704]

Dear PA4MMJ Members:

You may have received a previous email from me in which I mention that PA US Senator Arlen Specter is pro-medical marijuana. He even said he'd use it if it were legal. Sen. Specter has cancer and is undergoing up to 12 rounds of chemotherapy, so it's no wonder he's supportive. More information can be found at The Bulletin - Philadelphia's Family Newspaper - Specter Would 'Absolutely' Use Medical Marijuana

Arlen Specter Sponsor Medical Marijuana?
Currently, the two medical marijuana bills in the US House of Representatives have no counterpart in the Senate. We need a sponsor in the Senate, and I can't think of anyone better than Specter. I have already called his office and asked if he has any plans on introducing something, and his receptionist said she was unaware of any plans, but she did take down what I had to say.

TAKE ACTION!

We need your help! If we're ever going to get this done, we need people to write letters to Senator Specter.

Action 1: Call Specter today! It takes five minutes and makes our medijuana a front line issue. All you have to do is mention HR5842, and ask that the Senator consider introducing legislation in the Senate that would be a counterpart to it. Also, mention PA4MMJ and our efforts to legalize medical marijuana in the state. They want to know these things! You can find telephone and office address information at .: United States Senator Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania :: Contact :. . When calling, call his Washington DC office (the first one on there) to ensure consistency.

Action 2: Write Senator Specter a letter! PhillyNORML will be collecting letters this Thursday night at our next meeting, written by our members and supporters, and will mail/fax them to the Senator's office ourselves. So please, take 15 minutes and write to the Senator and ask him to sponsor a counterpart bill to HR 5842 - Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act. Remember to come to the meeting to drop it off! If you can't make it you can e-mail it in MS Word or PDF format to me at co-chair@phillynorml.org and I'll make sure it's included.

Having this kind of support at the Federal level should make our job of getting medical marijuana legalized in PA that much easier. So please take 5 or 15 minutes to do this!

Thank you for your support,

- Derek Rosenzweig
PhillyNORML Co-Chairman
PA4MMJ Co-Founder
Web: Welcome to PhillyNORML
Pennsylvanians For Medical Marijuana
Email: co-chair@phillynorml.org
Phone: 215-499-5354

PS - If you do call or write, please reply to this and let me know!