White House Press Secretary Tries To Defend Obama’s Opposition To Taxing And Regulating Pot — He Can’t!

UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!!

The HuffingtonPost.com, one of the most visited political websites in the world, has just posted a version of my commentary online here. Please post your feedback to the Post, and make it clear that marijuana law reform must be part of the ‘progressive’ agenda.

If you thought President Barack Obama’s mocking response to the question of whether “taxing and regulating cannabis would raise revenue and reduce prohibition-associated violence” couldn’t be any worse, just listen to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs stumble below.

Kudos to the reporters who held the White House’s feet to the fire on this one. First, Gibbs is asked: “When the President said he doesn’t think that legalizing marijuana would give the economy a boost was he giving a political answer or an economic answer? Does he have numbers to back (his position) up?”

The pained expression on Gibbs’ face says it all as he mumbles that, in fact, he is aware of no economic analyses — as in zip, nada — that support the President’s dismissive position. Naturally, we have numerous credible economic reports proving just the opposite. Perhaps Mr. Gibbs would like to review them here, here, here, and here.

Minutes later, the White House Press Secretary appears even more desperate for a place to hide when a second reporter asked Gibbs to articulate the reasons why the President refuses to consider the issue. Gibbs’ response is priceless.

“Uh, he, he does not think that, uh, uh, that that is uh, uh, [pause] he opposes it, he doesn’t think that that’s the, the right plan for America.”

And there you have it. Wow. Such a vapid response wouldn’t cut it if Gibbs was a third-grader standing in front of his classroom, no less the Press Secretary to the White House!

Keep in mind, both Obama and his press secretary knew in advance that they were going to publicly respond the question of taxing and regulating cannabis. They had at least 24 hours to prepare an articulate, rational, and substantive response. And yet the best response they could come up with was snickers and “uh.”

Are the final days of marijuana prohibition upon us? It sure looks that way from here. But why not write the President and ask him yourself.

NORML’s Weekly Legislative Round Up

As I wrote on NORML’s blog yesterday, let the White House laugh for now but the public knows that the marijuana law reform issue is no laughing matter.

More states are moving forward to reduce or eliminate criminal penalties for marijuana offenses, and this week has been especially busy.

If you have not yet gotten active in your state, now is most definitely the time to start.

Here’s this week’s latest summary of how you can get involved!

Taxing & Regulating Marijuana: As we noted previously this week, a pair of bills — House Bill 2929 and Senate Bill 1801 — seeking to “tax and regulate the cannabis industry” have been introduced in the Massachusetts legislature. You can show your support for these measures here.

In California, next Tuesday’s scheduled hearing before the Public Safety Committee on Assembly Bill 390: The Marijuana Control, Regulation and Education Act, has been postponed. However, this is a good news! Members of the Committee on Public Safety and Health were anticipated to vote on AB 390 immediately following next week’s hearing. While it is impossible to know how the Committee would have voted, all early indications were that several powerful members of the Committee were expected to oppose the bill. We now have additional time to lobby the Public Safety Committee and the Assembly to support AB 390, which you can do here and here.

Decriminalizing Marijuana: Members of the Connecticut Joint Committee on Judiciary heard testimony this week from NORML and others in favor of Senate Bill 349, which seeks to reclassify the possession of minor amounts of marijuana from a misdemeanor to an infraction. This measure is backed by a solid majority of state voters, and you can urge the Judiciary Committee to support this effort here.

Members of the Rhode Island Senate Judiciary Committee also heard testimony in favor of a similar bill, Senate Bill 320. You can read about the hearing here, and voice your support by going here.

Finally in Montana, members of the House Judiciary Committee deadlocked in a 9 to 9 vote this week on House Bill 541, which seeks to reclassify the possession of thirty grams or less of marijuana from a criminal misdemeanor to a civil infraction. This action does not kill HB 541, as the Committee can reconsider the issue if just one member is persuaded to change their vote. Help them do so by going here.

Legalizing Medical Marijuana: In arguably the biggest legislative news of the week, members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted Wednesday 234 to 138 in favor of House Bill 648, which seeks to authorize the physician supervised use of marijuana. The vote marked the first time that either chamber of the legislature had voted in favor of the medicinal use of cannabis. You can learn more about this effort by going here and here.

In other progress, legislative committees in Illinois and Minnesota also approved medical marijuana bills this week. Key hearings and committee votes are also scheduled in the coming days in Montana and Alabama. You can learn how to support these and other statewide medical cannabis efforts at NORML’s Take Action Center here.

To learn about additional pending legislation in Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and Washington, please visit NORML’s Legislative Action Alerts page here.

President Obama: What Is So Funny About Taxing And Regulating Marijuana?

FRIDAY UPDATE!!!

Here’s another way you can let the White House know what you think. The Drug Czar’s blog, Pushing Back, is asking for the public’s feedback regarding Thursday’s Town Hall Meeting. You already know what they think; let them know what you think here.

UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!!

Since many of you are writing President Obama on your own, NORML would like to assist the process by providing you with a link for contacting the White House directly. Please log on and send your e-mails by going here.

Also, please check The Hill.com (Read and comment here) and HuffingtonPost.com (Read and comment here) on Friday for updated versions of this commentary, and please post your feedback to those forums as well.

Speaking live moments ago 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 voters 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.

Obama ‘Open For Questions’ About The Economy — Ask Him To Support Taxing And Regulating Marijuana

WhiteHouse.gov is once again asking the public to pose questions directly to President Obama via its ‘Open For Questions‘ service. The topic of this week’s forum is the national economy, and not surprisingly, many of you have already put forward questions to the President regarding the taxation and regulation of cannabis.

For example, the most popular question in the category “Budget” is: “With over 1 out of 30 Americans controlled by the penal system, why not legalize, control, and tax marijuana to change the failed war on drugs into a money making, money saving boost to the economy?”

Similarly, under the topic “Financial Stability,” most asked question is: “Would you support the bill currently going through the California legislature to legalize and tax marijuana, boosting the economy and reducing drug cartel related violence?”

Marijuana-related questions also top the “Green Jobs and Energy” category, and are among the top vote-getters on the site overall.

According to website, President Obama will “answer some of the most popular submissions live at WhiteHouse.gov” on Thursday morning. That means that we only have a few more hours left to contact the White House.

Please take a moment right now to log on the WhiteHouse.gov/OpenForQuestions and vote for the questions above, as well as others pertaining to the need to regulate cannabis. Let the President know that millions of American voters believe that the time has come to tax and regulate marijuana. Help us send The White House a message our elected leaders can’t ignore.

NORML Breaking News: Marijuana Legalization Bills Introduced In Massachusetts!

UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!! UPDATE!!! Listen to the NORML Audio Stash today (March 25) for a discussion of Massachusetts’ tax and regulate proposals with Richard Evans. Click here to tune in.

California’s highly publicized effort to legalize the commercial cultivation and sale of cannabis is getting some well-deserved company!

A pair of bills — House Bill 2929 and Senate Bill 1801 — seeking to “tax and regulate the cannabis industry” have just been introduced in the Massachusetts legislature.

These proposals seek to legally regulate the commercial production and distribution of marijuana for adults over 21 years of age.  Like California’s proposal, they would impose licensing requirements and excise taxes on the retail sale of cannabis. By some estimates, these taxes could raise nearly $100 million in annual state revenue.

Adults who possess or grow marijuana for personal use, or who engage in the non-profit transfer of cannabis, would not be subject to taxation under the law.

You can read more about these bills at the new website: http://www.cantaxreg.com. If you live in Massachusetts, we urge you to write your elected officials in support of H. 2929 and S. 1801 by going here.

“Decades of whispered grumblings about the wisdom and efficacy of prohibition is rapidly giving way to a serious—really serious public discussion about how to replace it,” said former NORML Board Member Richard Evans, who assisted in drafting the landmark legislation. “Those who consider themselves leaders in government and the media have the obligation to either show how prohibition can be made to work, or join in the exploration of alternatives.”

We can’t think of a better place to begin this discussion on the east coast than Massachusetts, where last November 65 percent of voters endorsed a statewide initiative reclassifying marijuana possession as a fine-only offense under state law.  Will a majority of Bay State voters also support legalization? We may soon find out!