Law Enforcement: DEA Spent $123,000 on Administrator's Flight to Colombia
The federal budget deficit is reaching astronomical proportions, and the DEA administrator took a $123,000 plane ride to Colombia?!?!
DEA
Feature: DEA Raids More California Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Prompting Obama Administration to Reiterate Pledge to Stop Them
On the campaign trail, President Obama pledged repeatedly to end the DEA raids on medical marijuana dispensaries in California. The DEA hit four more in the LA area Tuesday, and the administration responded in the media Wednesday night.
Medical Marijuana: DEA Hits California Dispensary in First Raid of Obama Administration -- New President Promised End to Raids
The DEA raided another California dispensary Thursday, marking the first raid on President Obama's watch. Obama vowed during the campaign to end them, and activists are hoping it's just Bush administration holdovers at work. What is Obama going to do?
Feature: Politics Trumps Science as DEA Rejects Researcher's Request to Grow Marijuana for FDA-Approved Studies
After years of delay and obstructionism, the DEA has finally acted on the request of a UMass researcher to grow marijuana for FDA-approved research. The response: Get lost!
Feature: DEA Rejects Yet Another Rescheduling Petition, But the End Game Lies Far Down the Road
Marijuana reform advocates have been seeking to have it rescheduled out of Schedule I since 1972. This week, the DEA rejected the latest petition to seek rescheduling, but that just sets the stage for the next moves. Meanwhile, another petition is moving through the bureaucratic process.
West Africa: Here Come the Narcs
In recent years, South American cocaine traffickers aiming at lucrative European markets have made West Africa a favorite stop-over. Now, the narcs are following them.
Feature: Gazing Into the Crystal Ball -- What Can We Expect in 2009?
Will 2009 be a happy New Year for positive drug policy changes? Here, we take a look at what could -- or couldn't -- be coming down the pike, as well as some festering issues that aren't going to go away.
Latin America: Venezuela Could Renew Cooperation With DEA, Chávez Says
A new administration in Washington could mean better relations with Venezuela, including renewed cooperation with the DEA, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez said Sunday. But cooperation is a two-way street...
Feature: Obama's Appointees Raise Questions in the Drug Reform Community
The drug war records of some key Obama picks -- Biden, Emanuel, Holder -- are prompting wailing and gnashing of teeth among some drug reformers, but others suggest it's better to keep working quietly on progress than obsess on the past.
Australia: Hemp Production Now Legal in New South Wales
The Australian state of New South Wales has joined Canada, China, and various European countries in allowing the cultivation of industrial hemp. Tough luck, American farmers.