Chronicle AM -- May 20, 2014

The organized opposition in Alaska gets a donation, medical marijuana is finally moving in the New York Senate, the Fair Sentencing Act picks up another sponsor, there's more violence in Mexico, and more meth in Asia, and more. Let's get to it:

Alaska Group Opposed to Legalization Initiative Gets First Big Contribution. The organized opposition to Alaska's marijuana legalization initiative has received its first large cash donation. The group Big Marijuana, Big Mistake, Vote No on 2 received $25,000 from the Chenaga Corporation, an Alaska Native company. No word on how the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Alaska is doing on fundraising, but it is backed by the Marijuana Policy Project.

Wyoming Legislator Campaigns for Reelection on Marijuana Legalization Platform. Rep. James Byrd (D-Laramie) is seeking a fourth term in the state legislature, and he said in an interview Monday that marijuana legalization, jobs, and education would be some of his leading priorities if he is reelected. This year, Byrd authored a bill to decriminalize possession in the Cowboy State. It was defeated, but he is carrying on unabashed.

Medical Marijuana

New York Medical Marijuana Bill Finally Moving in Senate; Wins Committee Vote. The state Senate Health Committee today narrowly approved Senate Bill 4406, the Compassionate Care Act. Similar bills have been approved by the Assembly in recent years, but this marks the first time the Senate has taken up the issue. If allowed to the Senate floor for a vote, the bill is expected to pass.

Sentencing

Federal Smarter Sentencing Act Picks Up Another Sponsor. And then there were 31; 19 Democrats and 12 Republicans. The latest cosponsor is Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA). The bill, House Resolution 3382, would reduce some mandatory minimum drug sentences, allow judges to sentence below the mandatory minimum in some circumstances, and allow people sentenced under old crack cocaine laws to be resentenced. The bill has been stalled in a House Judiciary Committee subcommittee since January.

Law Enforcement

NSA, DEA "Blurring the Lines" Between War on Drugs and War on Terror. The latest article based on leaked documents from Edward Snowden, published by Glenn Greenwald and crew, shows how the NSA and the DEA have merged the war on drugs and the war on terror since the 2001 attacks on New York City and Washington, DC. The story details how the NSA recorded "virtually every" cell phone call in the Bahamas using a DEA "backdoor" to get into the Bahamian phone networks. The authors worry that if the NSA is using intelligence gained under the guise of fighting the war on drugs for counter-terrorism or other spying purposes, it could endanger the cooperation of host countries.

International

Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA) to Hold Briefing on Drug Policy in Latin America. There will be a briefing on the current state of drug policy in Latin America and potential implications for US policy hosted by Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA) at the Congressional Meeting Room South at 10:00am, Thursday, May 29. The panelists are Ambassador Paul Simons, executive director of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission of the OAS; John Walsh, senior associate for drug policy and the Andes at the Washington Office on Latin America; and Vanda Felbab-Brown, senior fellow at the Brookings Institute. For more information, contact Caitie Whelan in Rep. Farr's office.

More Drug War Violence in Mexico's Northeast. Another seven bodies have been discovered in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, which is undergoing a renewed surge of violence as competing cartels fight with each other and the security services. The four men and three women were found Sunday night in an abandoned car in the port city of Tampico. More than a hundred people have been killed in the drug wars in Tamaulipas in the past month, and the federal government announced last week that it is stepping up operations in the state.

More Meth, More New Synthetics as Asia Becomes World's Largest Stimulant Market, UN Report Says. Asia is the world's largest market for stimulants, with methamphetamine seizures there tripling to at least 36 tons over the past five years, according to a new report from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. The report, the Global Synthetic Drugs Assessment 2014, also found that new synthetic drugs -- or New Psychoactive Substances (NSPs) in UN-speak -- are expanding rapidly as well, and are often found in substances marketed as traditional amphetamines or Amphetamine Type Substances (ATSs).

(This article was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)