Pubdate: Fri, 29 Mar 2013
Source: Glasgow Daily Times (KY)
Copyright: 2013 Glasgow Daily Times
Contact:  http://www.glasgowdailytimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2078
Author: Jonathan Miller
Note: Jonathan Miller, The Recovering Politician, has been elected 
twice to statewide office; authored two books on faith and public 
policy; graduated with high honors from Harvard's college and law 
school; co-founded No Labels, a national grassroots reform movement.
Page: A4

HEMP BILL GROWS FROM BIPARTISAN LEGISLATION

We tend to mythologize the dead; and perhaps that's fair with 
politicians who've passed, since we use them for rhetorical target 
practice when they are stumping the earth.

But regardless of the intended spirit, today is a very special day 
for the memory of my friendly acquaintance and sometimes political 
rival, Gatewood Galbraith.

On the surface, the two of us could not have looked any more 
different - my buttoned-down, over-dressed-to-try-to-look-my-age 
appearance was a stark contrast to his rugged and ragged 
hippie/cowboy mien. And the communitarian ethos of my attempt at 
being an auteur, The Compassionate Community, was a diametric 
challenge to the in-your-face libertarianism of his autobiographical 
"The Last Free Man in America."

But as we campaigned against each other in the 2007 Kentucky 
gubernatorial primary, Gatewood and I learned we shared a very deep 
bond: a mutual frustration with politics-as-usual, especially with 
the hyper-partisan, broken-down political system within which both of 
us had given much of our lives.

So when he died suddenly last year, I decided to honor his memory by 
taking another look at his pet cause - the issue that drove him the 
most passionately - the campaign for which he endured decades of 
public ridicule - the stance that probably ensured that he would 
never hold public office: The legalization of marijuana, and of its 
distant cousin, industrial hemp.

It didn't take me long to realize that Gatewood was right: Legalizing 
pot not only made strong economic sense for our poor state, I 
believed that it was a moral imperative. I shared my views in my 
hometown paper and The Huffington Post; and upon publication, learned 
that most of my friends had agreed with Gatewood, and just had been 
too embarrassed to admit it.

While a few states have marched quickly down the legalization path in 
recent years, I realize that my conservative old Kentucky home will 
probably lag the national trend by several years, if not the full 20 
as per Mark Twain's famous description of the Bluegrass State.

But I had hope for hemp. It was a matter of clear and convincing 
logic that the non-narcotic crop that was grown by Henry 
Clay  Kentucky's second most famous 19th Century native - could 
ultimately boost a farm economy struggling due to the incredibly 
shrinking global demand for tobacco. So I used my digital platform to 
advocate for hemp legalization.

I soon learned of a whole new group of unlikely allies. Hemp was not 
simply the pet cause of many of my tree-hugging, peace-seeking 
friends on the left, I learned that it was also a special focus of 
many libertarian, liberty-loving Tea Party activists on the right.

Kentucky's Agriculture Commissioner Jamie Comer grabbed hold of this 
motley coalition, and asked me to join him on his newly-invigorated 
Industrial Hemp Commission. Together, a group that would likely find 
strong disagreement on any number of hot-button issues, drafted a 
bill that would establish an administrative and law enforcement 
structure for hemp growers should the crop be legalized at the 
federal level. Critically, it would empower Kentucky to jump to the 
front of the line and establish itself as the national leader on the 
crop once expected federal approval was granted.

I have to admit, I didn't expect Senate Bill 50 to pass early on. 
Another unlikely coalition, composed of law enforcement officials and 
members of both the Democratic and Republican establishments, joined 
their voices in strong opposition. When Comer and I debated law 
enforcement on statewide television, I knew in my mind that our 
positions were persuasive, but my heart warned me that the political 
opposition was too strong to surmount this quickly.

I had recognized that Comer was a comer - and as a conservative 
Republican bucking law enforcement, I realized that he had the 
courage and chutzpah that define my personal definition of 
leadership. But I had underestimated Comer's political shepherding skills.

Within weeks, half of Kentucky's federal delegation had endorsed the 
bill: Sen. Rand Paul was an early and strong supporter; but 
surprisingly, liberal Democrat Congressman John Yarmuth soon was 
joined by his usual nemesis, GOP Sen. Mitch McConnell, in common 
cause. Then in a few short months, Comer united most Frankfort 
Republicans - many of whom had been previous opposed or on the fence 
- - to support Senate Bill 50, and it flew through the GOP-held Senate. 
A few weeks later, a coalition of hemp-supporting Democrats, 
including Sen. Robin Webb and Rep. Tom McKee, helped squash 
objections to push the bill, almost unanimously, through a House committee.

As the General Assembly slogged towards the conclusion of its 
business, however, Senate Bill 50 appeared to be gasping through its 
last throes; indeed, the bill was pronounced dead on about a half 
dozen occasions. Ultimately, it was another leader with real 
backbone, Democratic House Majority Leader Rocky Adkins, who offered 
persistent resuscitation. And at a late night meeting between Adkins, 
Comer and Senate bill sponsor Paul Hornback - with just about 60 
minutes before the General Assembly would be closed for the year for 
business - a compromise was hammered out. It was one of those 
bi-partisan, problem-solving moments that we dream about in our No 
Labels grassroots movement, an all-too-rare moment when good policy 
trumps hyper-partisanship. The kind of moment at which Gatewood 
Galbraith would have simply shaken his head and smiled his famous crooked grin.

In the coming months, I look forward to joining Comer and our 
congressional delegation as we meet with key policymakers in 
Washington to try to secure either a waiver for Kentucky to grow 
hemp, if not full federal legalization for the crop.

But as I do, I will be mindful of the critical role that the late, 
great Gatewood Galbraith played in plowing the ground for this 
moment. Too many of us laughed at him when he made the case for hemp 
decades ago. Today, I imagine him laughing down at the rest of us, as 
his vision is on the verge of finally being realized.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom