Pubdate: Thu, 02 Oct 2014
Source: Boulder Weekly (CO)
Copyright: 2014 Boulder Weekly
Contact:  http://www.boulderweekly.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/57
Author: Leland Rucker

ERIC HOLDER'S MIXED RECORD ON CANNABIS REFORM

Eric Holder tendered his resignation last week, though he will stay 
in office until a successor is chosen for the attorney general 
position. Given congressional inertia on presidential nominees, he 
could still fill out Obama's term, so I'm not holding my breath.

I'll leave his ultimate legacy to others, but on the subject of 
cannabis, Holder has a mixed record. While he has never advocated for 
legalization or decriminalization, he is the first attorney general 
to publicly question whether the federal government should reevaluate 
its cannabis laws.

Holder has changed his tune over the years. Along with the Drug 
Enforcement Agency, he was involved in the crackdown on dozens of 
medical dispensaries in Colorado and California during the 
administration's first term. But over time, his tactics changed, and 
he has worked to reduce the number of Americans in prison, especially 
for nonviolent offenses (which include cannabis possession or minor 
sales), to reduce punitive and mandatory minimum sentencing policies 
(some of those for cannabis-related crimes) and sought to emphasize 
drug education over school no-tolerance policies, allow early release 
of elderly inmates and to find ways to reintegrate ex-convicts back 
into the workforce.

You can argue, and many have already, that he and the administration 
haven't done enough. But even though cannabis is illegal at the 
federal level, an attorney general who guarantees no federal 
interference in businesses that operate in states that allow medical 
or retail cannabis as long as they are "within state laws and don't 
violate other federal law enforcement priorities" is a hell of an 
improvement from any previous administration dating back to Richard 
Nixon's. And at least so far, he's kept his word on that one.

Holder says he is open to talk of rescheduling cannabis from its 
designation as a Schedule 1 drug, defined as one that has a high 
potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment 
and cannot be prescribed by a doctor.

"I think it's certainly a question that we need to ask ourselves - 
whether or not marijuana is as serious a drug as is heroin," Holder 
told Yahoo News last week. "The question of whether or not they 
should be in the same category is something that I think we need to 
ask ourselves, and use science as the basis for making that determination."

Cannabis activists have pushed the administration to bypass Congress 
and reschedule cannabis into a less onerous category on its own. Some 
arguments are persuasive. Law-enforcement money could certainly be 
saved by not arresting cannabis users, and taxes from cannabis sales 
would help in tough economic times. It would almost certainly improve 
things for Colorado and Washington and other states that have 
approved retail cannabis or possibly will in this election cycle. 
(Florida and Guam will decide on medical marijuana, Alaska and Oregon 
will be voting on retail sales and Washington, D.C. will decide 
whether to allow adults to grow and possess limited amounts.)

Under the Controlled Substances Act, the Department of Justice could 
do that through a rulemaking process, but it's lengthy and tedious. A 
1972 petition to allow doctors to prescribe cannabis wasn't denied 
until 1994, after numerous court challenges. A rescheduling petition 
filed in 2002 was denied in 2011. Petitions filed in 2011 by 
governors Lincoln Chafee and Christine Gregoire to reclassify 
cannabis are still outstanding. Neither Holder nor the DEA, whose 
head, Michelle Leonhart, is a strict prohibitionist, have done much 
to expedite them, although in June it was reported that the DEA asked 
the FDA to evaluate cannabis' potential for abuse for possible 
reclassification.

Holder and Obama have been reluctant to go that route, and I think 
Holder is correct in saying that it will be up to Congress to change 
its scheduling permanently. Given the divide, that sounds almost 
impossible, although at least in the House of Representatives, 
cannabis legalization/reform is becoming a more bipartisan issue.

Finally, kudos to the Jefferson County high schoolers who boycotted 
classes and marched in the streets to object to changes in the Jeffco 
history curriculum suggested by new schoolboard members.

"Materials should promote citizenship, patriotism, essentials and 
benefits of the free enterprise system, respect for authority and 
respect for individual rights," the proposal read. "Materials should 
not encourage or condone civil disorder, social strife or disregard 
of the law. Instructional materials should present positive aspects 
of the United States and its heritage."

I can't help but note that the protesters on the streets, who 
masterfully manipulated the media into worldwide coverage, are the 
same people targeted by our governor and some state officials in the 
slickly produced $2 million post- Reefer Madness campaign to scare 
them into not using cannabis. As if we needed it, it's just another 
reminder of how outof-touch some of our leaders really are.

When will they ever learn?

You can hear Leland discuss his most recent column and Colorado 
cannabis issues each Thursday morning on KGNU. 
http://news.kgnu/category/features/weedbetween-the-lines/
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom