Pubdate: Wed, 08 Oct 2014
Source: Gazette, The (Colorado Springs, CO)
Copyright: 2014 The Gazette
Contact: http://www.gazette.com/sections/opinion/submitletter/
Website: http://www.gazette.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/165

GOVERNOR SHOULD HAVE FOUGHT 'RECKLESS' LAW ON MARIJUANA

Brew pub entrepreneur John Hickenlooper, when running for his first
term as governor, had an intriguing idea. Colorado's Front Range could
become the Napa Valley of high-end domestic beer. Gov. Hickenlooper is
facing one of the toughest re-election fights of his political career.
Several polls suggest he's in a close race against Beauprez, a former
member of the U.S. House.

Four years later, we're the Napa Valley of pot. It happened under the
governor's watch. He clearly doesn't like the fact we're the butt of
late-night drug jokes and a cautionary tale for the rest of the world.
We were known for mountains, eclectic towns and outdoor adventure.
Today, we're first known for a degree of marijuana lenience found
nowhere else in the world. Even this year's trip to the Super Bowl
became endless fodder for druggie jokes on social media and late-night
TV.

When the pot issue arose at a gubernatorial candidates debate Monday,
the governor said this:

"I'm not saying it was reckless because I'll get quoted everywhere,
but if it was up to me, I wouldn't have done it, right. I opposed it
from the very beginning. Oh, what the hell, I'll say it was reckless."

The governor has always availed himself to The Gazette's editorial
board, showing up to meet whenever invited. We can confirm, with
certainty and recordings, that Hickenlooper has consistently opposed
legalized recreational marijuana from the time Amendment 64 petitions
hit the streets. He's a dad who cares about kids and doesn't want his
state used for a drug experiment that could go wrong.

We also know Gov. Hickenlooper never enthusiastically crusaded against
this law. He could have, and should have, used his influence as a
popular public servant. He had won in a landslide. People trusted his
judgment at the same time pot proponents pitched the idea of a new
state-sanctioned drug trade.

An organized, high-profile, well-funded opposition campaign to
Amendment 64 - led by the governor - could have defeated it.
Hickenlooper could have given speeches and made commercials that asked
his supporters to vote "no" on 64. Moderate voters probably would have
listened. Even those who disagreed would have respected the governor's
willingness to stand for a cause he believed in.

Monday's marijuana comment, made with expressed trepidation,
highlights the governor's reluctance to lead at full capacity. Perhaps
an interest in maintaining acceptance among far-left factions of his
party trumps a conviction to stand for his centrist values and
beliefs. It probably explains why he helped create three gun control
laws, then told a gathering of hostile sheriff's he regretted not
having all the facts when he signed them into law. It may explain the
odd decision to temporarily spare the life of Chuck E. Cheese killer
Nathan Dunlap, declining permanent clemency, then telling CNN he might
grant a lifelong reprieve before leaving office.

Gov. Hickenlooper should make decisions and defend them. Not everyone
will agree with everything he does. But this is not a popularity
contest. Voters want leaders who trust their instincts and lead,
without need for universal acceptance. Millions of pro-choice, liberal
Democratic Americans voted for pro-life, conservative Republican
Ronald Reagan because they trusted him to trust himself and lead from
the heart.

In a society increasingly devoid of leadership, ordinary people
leading busy lives can be easily duped. We can even be convinced that
another legalized intoxicant - distributed on Main Street - is a good
idea. Without strong leadership, we're even prone to make decisions
that are downright reckless.  
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MAP posted-by: Richard