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Executive Branch

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Why This Cop Asked the President About Legalizing Drugs

You might not think a 65-year-old retired deputy sheriff would take to the Internet to ask the president of the United States to consider legalizing drugs, but that's just what MacKenzie Allen did recently. The answer he got from President Obama in YouTube's "Your Interview with the President" contest pleasantly surprised him. Obama responded by saying that legalizing drugs is "an entirely legitimate topic for debate."

Obama to Meet Mexico's Calderon Amid Drug Prohibition Violence

The drug prohibition war in Mexico has failed despite Mexico deploying soldiers and federal police in a widespread crackdown on drug trafficking organizations that has left more than 34,600 people dead since December of 2006. Now, President Barack Obama plans to meet Mexico's President Felipe Calderon amid a spike in drug prohibition violence which led to the shooting of two US federal agents.

White House Moves to Fund Needle Exchanges As Drug Treatment

The Obama administration has designated needle exchanges as a drug treatment program, allowing federal money set aside to treat addictions to be used to distribute syringes to intravenous drug users. Two years ago President Obama lifted the 21-year ban on federally funded needle exchange programs as a necessary evil to reduce the spread of HIV among illicit drug users. The new position, determined by the surgeon general, is that the states can receive federal funding for programs that hand out the syringes as a treatment. A 11-year-old study in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment that found that addicts who participated in needle exchanges were five times more likely to enter drug treatment.
Drug War Autopilot and Co-Autopilot: ONDCP Director Gil Kerlikowske with President Obama
Drug War Autopilot and Co-Autopilot: ONDCP Director Gil Kerlikowske with President Obama

The 2012 Federal Drug Budget: More of the Same [FEATURE]

The Obama administration has submitted its 2012 federal drug control budget proposal. There's not much new there, and little evidence the administration is putting its money where its mouth is.

Cut Drug War Spending (Action Alert)

Hi Friends,

In a recent Q&A with YouTube viewers, President Obama said that U.S. drug policy focuses too heavily on law enforcement. He also took a huge step forward calling drug legalization an "entirely legitimate topic for debate." If you haven't taken action on the email alert I sent you last week, please take a minute to do so now. We have a great opportunity to cut funding for arrests and incarceration by treating drug use as a health issue instead of a criminal issue.

Sincerely,

Bill Piper
Director, Office of National Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance

We Are the Drug Policy Alliance.

 

 

Tell President Obama to stop wasting money on the failed war on drugs.

Take Action!

Email the President

Dear Friends,

In his State of the Union address a few days ago, President Obama said it is time for the federal government to tighten its belt and stop wasting so much money. One of the biggest – and most destructive – wastes of money is the war on drugs. President Obama is working on a new federal budget – urge him to stop wasting money on the failed war on drugs.

In these times of deficits and budget cuts, let’s send a clear message: no more money for marijuana arrests. No more money for laughably stupid anti-marijuana ads. No more money for random drug testing. No more money for SWAT raids on people's homes for suspected drug law violations. No more money for long prison sentences for low-level, nonviolent drug offenses. No more money for the drug war. Period.

Tell the President that our tax dollars should be spent more wisely.

With your help we can eliminate or cut drug war waste and dismantle the war on drugs. Please take a minute to write the White House and tell President Obama to stop wasting your tax dollars on failed drug policies.

Sincerely,

Bill Piper
Director, Office of National Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance

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Bolivians Hold Coca "Chew-Ins" Opposing UN Ban

As the US, UK, and Sweden file formal objections to Bolivian efforts to amend the UN 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs to end the proscription on coca leaf chewing, Bolivians take to the streets.
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Obama Opposes Drug Legalization, But Hasn't Explained Why

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Having already commented on what I liked about Obama's comments on Thursday, I think it's equally important to take a look at what was missing. By acknowledging legalization as an "entirely legitimate topic for debate," the President has elevated the conversation still further into the realm of mainstream political acceptance, but with that comes a heightened obligation for our political leaders to clearly articulate and defend their positions. Obama's polite, predictable response leaves unanswered most of the defining questions in the drug policy debate and ultimately fails to address the concerns that make this issue a top priority for a large segment of the American public.

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