The Candidates on Federal Marijuana Club Raids

post from TalkLeft on 12 May 2008 11:23:00 AM. © TalkLeft

The San Francisco Chronicle has an article today on the presidential candidates and their positions on federal raids of marijuana dispensaries. It gets it somewhat right, but is a little misleading in my view. With the Oregon vote coming up, it paints Barack Obama as the only true friend of the medical marijuana user. (None are a friend to the recreational user,although Obama once said he was.)

Here's what I've found over the past months:

Hillary's views on medical marijuana (at least she's consistent, more evidence for my devil you know theory) are here and here: more research, end the federal raids.

The point is, it's not high on the list of Obama's priorities. Here's a recent quote to an Oregon newspaper:

I would not punish doctors if it's prescribed in a way that is appropriate. That may require some changes in federal law. I will tell you that...the likelihood of that being real high on my list is not likely. What I'm not going to be doing is using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws on this issue simply because I want folks to be investigating violent crimes and potential terrorism. We've got a lot of things for our law enforcement officers to deal with." (my emphasis.)

In other words, another drug law issue he's not anxious to spend political capital on fixing.

As for Hillary, in 2007 she said:

Sen. Clinton has publicly promised to end the federal raids on state medical marijuana patients and their caregivers. Sen. Clinton also voted against an amendment in the U.S. Senate that was intended to undermine state medical marijuana laws.

and,

With respect to medical marijuana, you know I think that we have had a lot of rhetoric and the federal government has been very intent upon trying to prevent states from being able to offer that as an option for people who are in pain. I think we should be doing medical research on this. We ought to find what are the elements that claim to be existing in marijuana that might help people who are suffering from cancer and nausea-related treatments. We ought to find that out. I don't think we should decriminalize it, but we ought to do research into what, if any, medical benefits it has."

In April, she told an Oregon newspaper she would not have the DEA make marijuana a top priority.

What would you do as president about the federal government not recognizing Oregon’s Medical Marijuana Program as legal?

We’ve got to have a clear understanding of the workings of pain relief and the control of pain. And there needs to be greater research and openness to the research that’s already been done. I don’t think it’s a good use of federal law-enforcement resources to be going after people who are supplying marijuana for medicinal purposes.

So you’d stop the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s raids on medical marijuana grows?

What we would do is prioritize what the DEA should be doing, and that would not be a high priority. There’s a lot of other more important work that needs to be done.

All of the Democratic candidates have endorsed ending federal raids on medical marijuana clinics in the states that have legalized marijuana. Obama was the last of the ten to do so.

Hillary promised to do so directly.

During a Manchester campaign on July 13, Len Epstein, a volunteer for Granite Staters for Medical Marijuana (GSMM), told Sen. Clinton, "Twelve states allow medical marijuana, but the Bush administration continues to raid patients," to which she responded, "Yes, I know. It's terrible." Epstein then asked, "Would you stop the federal raids?" Sen. Clinton responded firmly, "Yes, I will."

As for McCain, he's said it's a state issue.

The following day in Claremont, Sen. McCain held a town hall meeting at which he was asked about his stance on medical marijuana. When asked in April about ending the medical marijuana raids, McCain had responded, "I will let states decide that issue."

In short, Obama is a lot like Hillary on the subject of marijuana: Both want more research for medical marijuana, both would end federal raids in states where medical pot is legal, and neither favor decriminalization.