Drug War Issues
Politics & Advocacy
Billionaire investor George Soros has donated $1 million to support Proposition 19, a campaign spokesman told the Chronicle Tuesday. The donation came the same day Soros penned an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal saying he supported the marijuana legalization initiative.
George Soros (wikimedia.org)
It is unclear how the money will be spent, but both proponents and opponents of the measure have begun limited TV and radio ad buys as the clock ticks down toward election day.
The measure would legalize the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by adults 21 or over. It would also allow them to grow up to 25 square feet of pot and possess the resulting harvest. Cities and counties would have the local option of permitting, taxing, and regulating marijuana sales and cultivation.
The race is very close. The Talking Points Memo Polltracker, based on the average of all polls taken on Prop 19 this year, now has the measure trailing by one percentage point. Last minute ad campaigns and get out the vote efforts could make the difference between victory and defeat.
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Comments
I know Mr Soros will never
I know Mr Soros will never read this post, but i hope he feels the gratitude of the masses of people he is trying to help obtain real Liberty & Freedom. Thank you Mr Soros!
I have already voted yes on
I have already voted yes on prop 19 & so did my whole family... This last minute support is just what is needed to inspire people to vote yes on prop 19! I am so proud to see people coming out of the smokey cannabis closet and voting - with smiles on our faces!
keepin it G
keeping it G
Million dollars
closer to permanently dethroning the war monger prohibitionists racket.
Classic Ethan Nadelmann at work
This is typical DPA. Let someone else do all the hard work, all the heavy lifting, wait until success is imminent, then swoop in at the last possible minute with a big bag of Soros money, fund raise around the efforts of the true reform hero -- Richard Lee in this case -- and take all the credit. Don't get me wrong, I respect Soros, but he clearly isn't on to the DPA modus operandi. NM Governor expresses his intent to legalize drugs, DPA opens a NM office to ride his coattails and fund raise around reforms already underway. NJ Governor expresses his intent to institute needle exchange, DPA opens a NJ office to ride his coattails. Alabama Sentencing Commission recommends reforms, DPA is all of a sudden working in Alabama. When Ethan Nadelmann talks about MMJ in California these days he takes credit for Prop 215. Dennis who? If Prop 19 passes and I hope it does, Ethan Nadelmann will be there to claim victory and fund raise around it. Richard who? Ethan Nadelmann is a shameless opportunist who could not manage his way out of a paper bag. Look at the NORA initiative they bungled. How can you f-up a treatment instead of incarceration initiative? By going overboard on shameless opportunism and sneaking stuff into the fine print that doesn't belong, that's how. I would be very surprised if that $1M in Soros money "for Prop 19" does anything other than bloat an already bloated DPA. They are siphoning off donations that should legitimately go to Yes on 19 and galvanizing the opposition by making it possible for them to claim that Soros is behind it all. For shame!
Soros' money
Too little, far too late. He may as well have not spent a cent.
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