Pubdate: Wed, 11 Apr 2001
Source: Albuquerque Tribune (NM)
Copyright: 2001 The Albuquerque Tribune
Contact:  http://www.abqtrib.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/11
Author: Kate Nelson
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/johnson.htm (Johnson, Gary)

DRUG REFORM WILL HAVE TO COME WITH SOMEONE OTHER THAN GARY

When Gov. Gary Johnson said the best thing about this year's legislative 
session was that he "had fun," some of us wondered if he was on drugs.

Given the compression fractures in his spine, that wasn't a bad guess. But 
Johnson is addicted to exercise, not pain pills, and so the only 
explanation for his version of "fun" is this: He still doesn't get it.

Sure, the two-term Republican governor played somewhat nicer with the 
Democratic-led Legislature -- thanks largely to the election loss of House 
Speaker Raymond Sanchez and the in-house toppling of Senate President Manny 
Aragon.

But in the session's final days, he resorted to running with scissors 
again. And Democrats responded by shredding his agenda. Again.

For Johnson, the worst of the stings had to be his failed hope of becoming 
the nation's drug-policy reformer.

On Friday, Johnson signed the last of three drug bills that survived the 
session. Five others died on the final day. In any other year, such a 
partial victory would inspire a celebration. But with the political knives 
that await the rest of Johnson's term, the win-some-lose-some verdict could 
be New Mexico's final answer. At least for the next few years.

Ironically, Friday's bill signing represented a rare concession by Johnson 
to Democrats -- $9.8 million for drug-treatment programs. In six previous 
sessions, he vetoed every drug-treatment plan that crossed his desk. And 
his first set of reforms this session held nothing for treatment.

What did he get for giving in? Nothing. The most critical parts of 
Johnson's reform package died just a few procedural steps from passage. 
They languished in the session's final hours, victims of a hostage-taking 
duel over Johnson's threats to veto a tax cut he didn't like and a "pork" 
package dear to legislators' hearts.

"This was my first excursion into what I call hand-to-hand combat in 
lobbying," said former Gov. Toney Anaya, a paid lobbyist for the drug 
package. "I'm not sure I'd want to do it again."

Beyond the treatment money, legislators did authorize pharmacists to sell 
hypodermic needles to drug users and agreed to let police officers 
administer antidotes for heroin overdoses.

A rewrite of the asset-forfeiture law that had passed in previous sessions 
(only to be vetoed by a pre-drug-reform Johnson) failed this year. Also 
failing was a medical-marijuana bill and reductions in criminal penalties 
for minor drug possession.

If you want to add up the blame, start with Republican legislators, who 
mischaracterized the bills as drug legalization. Then factor in the 
Democrats, who are sick of Johnson's unorthodox style and are loathe to 
help him create his own legacy. The negative equation is completed by 
activists best described by one lobbyist as "Grateful Dead rejects."

Eschewing the suit-and-tie uniform of the Roundhouse, they delivered 
rambling testimonies about drug legalization, an idea that wasn't on the 
table. They also disrupted committee hearings by heckling legislators. 
(Here's a free tip: If you want someone to change his stance, don't call 
him "Hitler.")

"One has to recognize and respect the public's right to petition their 
government," Anaya said. "But we the lobbyists had our own game plan, our 
own network, our own relationships going. We would have felt very 
comfortable doing it according to our own game plan."

So is the drug-reform charge dead? It is for now. A special session this 
fall to redraw legislative district boundaries will feature more than 
enough blood all on its own. And next year's regular session will be 
lame-duck Johnson's last.

But therein, Anaya says, lies hope.

"A lot of Democrats who tried to erect roadblocks to the advancement of 
these bills because they were being supported by the governor made it known 
to me that whenever there's a Democrat sitting in that (governor's) chair 
- -- or even a non-Johnson Republican -- then they would be willing to 
support this."

Just think of how much "fun" Johnson will have watching his successor get 
what he himself wanted.
- ---
MAP posted-by: GD