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Obama Says Drug Legalization is "An Entirely Legitimate Topic for Debate" [Updated]
The staggering vote count and significant media coverage of the demand for discussion of drug policy in today's YouTube interview were too great to ignore.
President Obama to Answer Top Questions Posed by Public on YouTube Today, Top 100 Most Popular Questions ALL Related to Marijuana Law and Drug Policy Reform (Press Release)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JANUARY 27, 2011
President Obama to Answer Top Questions Posed by Public on YouTube Today
Top 100 Most Popular Questions ALL Related to Marijuana Law and
Drug Policy Reform
Drug Policy Reform Groups: Obama Needs to Listen to Public’s Concerns and Address Issue
CONTACT: Morgan Fox, MPP communications manager …………………. 202-905-2031 or [email protected]
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Drug Policy Alliance, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, the Marijuana Policy Project, NORML and Students for Sensible Drug Policy have issued the following joint statement:
“Following his 2011 State of the Union address, President Obama asked the public to submit questions for an exclusive YouTube interview that will take place at 2:30PM on Thursday January 27. The “Ask Obama” forum promises to take questions from the American people on the issues they find most important in terms of national policy.
“The people have spoken, and the message is loud and clear: the top 100 most popular questions (193,000 were submitted) are on marijuana reform and the harms of drug prohibition, with the first-place question coming from a former police officer who has first-hand experience with the failure of these policies. The questions dominating the forum deal with marijuana legalization, prohibition-related violence, and the fiscal and human consequences of mass incarceration. The American people want to know why our country is continuing the failed, catastrophic policy of drug prohibition.
“Several of the most popular questions also address why our elected leaders have virtually ignored these important issues. This is not the first time marijuana legalization and drug reform have dominated the response to Obama’s call for questions. There were similar results in both 2009 and 2010 when people asked Obama about ending prohibition and using science instead of politics to guide our drug policies. In 2009, Obama’s response was to laugh off the question about taxing and controlling marijuana. In 2010, Obama ignored the questions, despite the questions dominating in quantity and quality.
“We are encouraged by the grassroots response bubbling up around this issue and urge President Obama to address this issue seriously and thoroughly.”
With more than 124,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.
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Pro-Legalization Cop Gets 1st Place in YouTube's "Ask Obama" Contest (Press Release)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 27, 2010
CONTACT: Tom Angell (202) 557-4979 or [email protected]
In YouTube's "Ask Obama" Contest, Drug-Legalizing Cop Comes in First Place
Obama Previously Laughed Off Marijuana Questions, But Can He Ignore a Cop?
WASHINGTON, DC -- A video question about legalizing drugs from a former deputy sheriff has come in first place in YouTube's "Your Interview with the President" competition, where users submitted and voted on questions to be posed to President Barack Obama.
Obama is scheduled to answer the top-voted questions today, Thursday, Jan. 27, at 2:30 PM EST in an interview that will be streamed live online at http://www.youtube.com/askobama
The first-place question from MacKenzie Allen, the retired deputy sheriff and a currently a member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/copssaylegalizedrugs#p/u/6/Zbz9lnVbrwc
“As a proud American with a career in law enforcement behind me, I find it frustrating that many elected officials pay little or no attention to the serious harms caused by our failed drug policies," said MacKenzie Allen, a retired deputy sheriff who served in Los Angeles, CA and King County (Seattle), WA. "That's why I took advantage of what is likely my only opportunity to pose a question to our president, via the Internet. I’ve watched for decades as we throw good money after bad and, more importantly, life after life, at a 'War on Drugs' that is waged with counterproductive tactics and an overall flawed strategy. For the sake of those law enforcers who are still bravely on the front lines of the 'Drug War,' I hope our politicians will heed the call to finally discuss a new approach to drug control."
The Obama White House has previously asked citizens to submit and vote on questions via the web several times, with marijuana and drug policy issues rising to the top virtually every time. During a town hall meeting following one such round of voting in 2009, President Obama laughed off a marijuana legalization question, saying, "I don't know what this says about the online audience."
LEAP executive director Neill Franklin, a former Baltimore narcotics cop, responnds, "The fact that these questions keep getting the most votes says that Americans are tired of our elected officials ignoring this important issue. Some of my best friends have been killed in line of fire while enforcing these senseless laws. It's not a laughing matter, and the president shouldn't treat it as such."
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.
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It seems like such a simple concept, but for some irrational reason, a lot of people still don't get it. Here's another example of what happens when you give police permission to search your house for drugs:
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