Obama Should Have Taken the Pot Question Seriously At His Public Townhall

[Jim Finnel]

Since 1965, police have arrested over 20 million Americans for violating marijuana laws. Obama shouldn't laugh at questions about legalizing it.

Speaking live on Thursday, President Barack Obama pledged “to open up the White House to the American people.”

Well, to some of the American people that is.

As for those tens of millions of you who believe that cannabis should be legally regulated like alcohol — and the tens of thousands of you who voted to make this subject the most popular question in today’s online Presidential Town Hall — well, your voice doesn’t really matter.

Asked this morning whether he “would … support the bill currently going through the California legislation to legalize and tax marijuana, boosting the economy and reducing drug cartel related violence,” the President responded with derision.

“There was one question that was voted on that ranked fairly high and that was whether legalizing marijuana would improve the economy and job creation, and I don’t know what this says about the online audience,” he laughed.

“The answer is no, I don’t think that [is] a good strategy.”

Obama’s cynical rebuff was short-sighted and disrespectful to a large percentage of his supporters. After all, was it not this very same “online audience” that donated heavily to Obama’s Presidential campaign and ultimately carried him to the White House?

Second, as I’ve written previously in The Hill and elsewhere, the overwhelming popularity of the marijuana law reform issue — as manifested in this and in similar forums — illustrates that there is a significant, vocal, and identifiable segment of our society that wants to see an end to America’s archaic and overly punitive marijuana laws.

The Obama administration should be embracing this constituency, not mocking it.

Third, will somebody please ask the President: “What is it that you think is so funny about the subject of marijuana law reform?”

Since 1965, police have arrested over 20 million Americans for violating marijuana laws, yet nearly 90 percent of teenagers say that pot is “very easy” or “fairly easy” to obtain. That’s funny?

According to this very administration, there is an unprecedented level of violence occurring at the Mexico/US border — much of which is allegedly caused by the trafficking of marijuana to the United States by drug cartels. America’s stringent enforcement of pot prohibition, which artificially inflates black market pot prices and ensures that only criminal enterprises will be involved in the production and sale of this commodity, is helping to fuel this violence. Wow, funny stuff!

Finally, two recent polls indicate that a strong majority of regional voters support ending marijuana prohibition and treating the drug’s sale, use, and distribution like alcohol. A February 2009 Zogby telephone poll reported that nearly six out of ten of voters on the west coast think that cannabis should be “taxed and legally regulated like alcohol and cigarettes.” A just-released California Field Poll reports similar results, finding that 58 percent of statewide votes believe that regulations for cannabis should be the same or less strict than those for alcohol.

Does the President really think that all of these voters are worthy of his ridicule?

Let the White House laugh for now, but the public knows that this issue is no laughing matter. This week alone, legislators in Illinois, Minnesota, and New Hampshire voted to legalize the use of marijuana for authorized individuals. Politicians in three additional states heard testimony this week in favor of eliminating criminal penalties for all adults who possess and use cannabis. And lawmakers in Massachusetts and California are now debating legally regulating marijuana outright.

The American public is ready and willing to engage in a serious and objective political debate regarding the merits of legalizing the use of cannabis by adults. And all over this nation, whether Capitol Hill wants to acknowledge it or not, they are engaging in this debate as we speak.

Sorry Obama, this time the joke’s on you.



News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: AlterNet
Copyright: 2008 Independent Media Institute
Contact: Alternet: Support | AlterNet
Website: Obama Should Have Taken the the Pot Question Seriously At His Public Townhall | DrugReporter | AlterNet
Author: Paul Armentano is the senior policy analyst for the NORML Foundation in Washington, DC.

 

[infoman]

my thoughts on president obama---president obama?---is he eligibile?---is there a hidden agenda---f.g.s,,,aka,,,infoman,,,aka,,,drinfo,,,ohio,,---open the door of our prison and release all lst time non-violent criminals, expunge their records and give compensation,,,,

 

[Weed420]

Lust more evidence that our elected leaders have no concept of what real Americans feel, nor do they care. Its the same every 4 years, they talk of change but there is no change.
Gonna get us out of Iraq,ain't happening, we're escalting Afghanistan and Pakistan. Gonna close gitmo,ain't happening, gonna save the econmy, ain't happening, just leaving a huge burden for our children and grand children.
No changes. Just rhetoric.

 

[ADarkerBreed]

Sounds like he's just a politician.

 

[infoman]

hello,,,president obama,,,U admitted doing pot, coca*ine, and who knows what other levels of drugs U did during your youthful folly days,,,
what i want to know,,how about the over 80,000 lst time non-violent drug offenders who are in jail, their lives interrupted, their familys deprived of a parent, dreams and visions destroyed,,, and mr. president U had a the balls to looks at the ground and laugh,,,,just who are U SIR,,JUST WHAT COUNTRY DO u REPRESENT?---F.G.S.,,,aka,,,infoman,,,aka,,,drinfo,,,,ohio,,,

 

[tintala]

Obama is a criminal and a hypocrite, too bad he will miss out on all of the revenue growers across the country are reaping. What a quagmyer:I voted for Obama, now I hope he gets gluacoma.

 

[ADarkerBreed]

I think we were just fooled, by a man with good marketing, clever and eloquent as a true politician. Maybe it was the 8 years of stupidity beforehand that fooled us to follow this pied piper. Either way we as people need to start taking real action and show Obama that these numbers for legalization are real, and not just some 'online trolls'.

Polls won't get our work done we will.

 

[BigPhil]

Let him know how you feel here:

Obama got it wrong — MPP Blog

 

[zolar]

perhaps he needs to get real paper postcards hand written maybe then he will have balls enough to call for a review by the supreme court as they aren't running for office and might not have as much of an agenda.....

 

[BigPhil]

Maybe - but it would require some sort of sysytem in place to do that - emails are ez but actual snail mail - while very effective - is not easy to get people to gather and use the necessary resources to do that......I think there's some activist site online where you can send a 'hard' letter but it does cost a few $$$ - seems it might be worth it at this point - publish that link!

 

[Iam694]

We need to vote for someone else next time. Too bad these guys can tell us what we want to hear but when it comes time to produce they side step. Obama is no different that the ones before him.

 

[Vergere]

I totally agree that Obama should not have laughed and shrugged off the question and I am sure that he has already heard this from his staff. Of course, if he has not and does not think that he was in error then his staff and he are very out of touch with the people. If my last statement is true then he can't possibly win another election. Everything he does is under close scrutiny by all Americans because the majority are unhappy which means if he doesn't take enough actions that yield unmistakeable positive results, then nobody will vote for him anyway. I base this on two facts: America is in a much different place and mindset since the Bush administration: 1. Many more Americans are no longer willing to sit idley by and watch thier country go down the tubes as they did when Bush was in office. 2. The internet allows thoughts, ideas, and opinions of the average American to come through loud and clear which puts the power in the hands of the people.

I posted this on another thread and it applies here as well.

I think everyone is forgetting to look at this from several angles. First, I agree 100% that marijuana should be legalized, taxed, and regulated. I also agree that the prohibition of marijuana is a complete waste of time and resources. However, if I were to try and put myself in Obama's position things would look quite different. I would have to ask myself several questions. Here are just a few:
1. If I pushed to legalize marijuana would I have the support of congress and the senate?
2. Is it the will of the people? We think so but is it really the opinion of the majority? The only way to truly know is to put it to a vote which is being done by the states right now. So... why wouldn't I wait to see the outcome before I moved on the subject at all?
3. Obama is the first black president and does he want his legacy to be that he was the one who legalized marijuana? If the outcome is poor will some people in america play the race card and blame it on him being black? I know its terrible but it is still true.
4. Isn't the move to legalize marijuana progressing well enough as it is? Can he really afford to take a stand on this issue at this time? Why would he choose to take a stand on an issue that is so controversial during his first term? Right now, I would think Obama is about being around long enough to accomplish setting this country back on track...unfortunately it can't be done in 4 years and I think we all know that.

On the other hand...I can say that more would need to be done on this issue for him to get my vote the next time around. I will also say that his appointment of Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske was a definite step in the right direction and one that was meant to appease the pro-marijuana demographic. Lastly, California is in the right place and forging ahead for the entire country on this issue and I hands down commend Governor Schwarzenegger for his work. Imho he should be the next president but due to the presidential requirements it is not likely to happen unless we the people make it so - remember...everything is still in our hands, the only obstacle the American people truly face is complacency. When enough people start caring anything is possible.