Pubdate: Mon, 03 Dec 2001
Source: National Review (US)
Copyright: 2001 National Review
Contact:  http://www.nationalreview.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/287
Author: Nr Editors

CULT OF CALHOUN

A Different Spin On The Ashcroft's Assisted Suicide Move.

Attorney general John Ashcroft moved, it is said, to "overturn" Oregon's 
law permitting assisted suicide. Critics, mostly liberals, say that his 
action demonstrates that conservatives are hypocrites when they defend 
states' rights. But that appearance is solely the result of an imprecise 
formulation. What Ashcroft has done is to say, in effect, Look, Oregon 
voters can decide what the State of Oregon will or will not prosecute. But 
they cannot nullify federal law. And federal law prohibits doctors from 
using drugs to kill people deliberately. For the same reason, state 
referenda cannot legalize the medical use of marijuana; they can only 
register disagreement with the federal prohibition. Opponents of federal 
drug law should work to repeal or amend that law. Until that time, the 
question to ponder is not whether conservatives have abandoned 
federalism-but whether liberals, in taking up the cause of nullification, 
should pay homage to John C. Calhoun.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom