He works for and under President Elect Obama. The job is generally (GW's reign aside) not in direct influence to the President, persay. The job is to carry out Presidential orders. I very much doubt Emanuel will be calling many policy related shots in this regard. The orders will come from Obama, Emanuel will be required to carry them out whether he agrees with them or not because he is an employee. If that doesn't sit with him, I suspect we will see a new Chief of Staff appointed.

Let's not credit politicians with influence they do not necessarily have.

...I'm glad he's out of the Senate. After taking the oath of office, maybe Obama can send his VP on an international goodwill trip for the next four months.

ALTHOUGH HE VOTED YES FOR THE HINCHEY AMMENDMENT?

Apparently Obama has already backed down off of his previous promise to legalize marijuana... What is he going to do -- go before Congress on CSPAN and make a speech: "Surprise, we need to let people smoke pot?" Yeah right.

He is going to be too tied up with Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, healthcare promises he made, the economy, and the "crisis we don't even know about yet" to deal with a simple matter of personal freedom for the sheep. Plus with this crazy "hard charger" ballet dancing zealot whispering in his ear all the time, what do you expect? I think he is going to be forced to honor making some type of gesture along the lines of a policy recommendation for the DEA not to raid 'legit' grow ops, but other than that I wouldn't hold my breath so to speak. Theoretically it's the executive branch, so he should have some pull there, no?

I would turn my attention to MA's decrim and how that plays out in the 'real world'. Some very interesting legal issues regarding how the bill was put through, and we need to see if the governor/state senate are going to cave and veto it.

Personally I am concerned that the "medical marijuana" route is I'd say delaying the total decrim approach significantly in that it's all tied up in details and sniping back and forth. Plus the acceptance of Med MJ is so opposed by the establishment in general it will take forever. I mean the FDA can't approve legitimate uses for vitamins apparently, much less the fact that it takes 5 years or more to approve drugs for pharmaceutical companies that are 'respected members of the economy'... With everyone out there saying "us stoners (read: criminals) are burrito tasters" etc. I got a bad feeling about this.

Plus, I would look to further restrictions on liberty in the form of being a 'registered medical marijuana' patient being ineligible for a firearms purchases etc. at some point.

Not to mention you have to technically be REAL sick to use med MJ. What's the point? Either basically you have a terminal or chronic incapacitating illness, or you are still going to be in the justice system, except in Alaska, from what I can determine. It still boils down to police intervention, or oversight from state (and by extension of database sharing) federal government.

Establish intoxication levels, treat stoned driving as a crime, and let people smoke. Like with alcohol, keep it in the trunk while you're driving (I know ... I know.. but you have to compromise somewhere).. And just let people do their thing. My whole crusade is I'm not asking for cocaine etc. to be legal but I am really pissed I am forced to choose from alcohol and tobacco for recreational use because I know they are much more harmful to me from personal experience.

With December 5th being the 75th anniversary of the repeal of the 18th amendment, the current fiscal crisis could serve as the blade to cut many of the wasteful programs under the guise of the drug war.

Unfortunately, Obama has said that he wants to reinstate the Byrne Grants which funded such diasters as the Tulia drug raids. However, as the financial picture in this country worses, the public will be more open to eliminating or questioning funding of the drug war. The trend of more potenent drugs at lower prices is a fact that needs to be publicized and confronted.

Obama himself has stated that the drug war has failed. However, that we when he was in the initial stage of running in the Democratic primary. SInce he won that nomination, he's made statements and appointments that contradict his reformer image. If Obama appoints someone as drug czar with a background in health or treatment that's probably the best we can hope for. Meanwhile, as unemployment skyrockets and the stock market plummets, the desire to cut spending across Federal, State and local programs that fund the drug war will be hard for politicans to resist.

A look at the prison industry

The governor of California complains about the prison guard union, admitting that “some need to be behind bars”. But of course this is just all a law and order issue, no one stops to evaluate if this so called public service hasn’t been taken over by the talibomb for profit driven motives. Let’s look at some facts and at this so called blue code of silence weather the fact that they control the crave is just science fiction or if the talibomb might be using them and high technology to gut our cities and create crime.
1. They put non violent offenders in and create an atmosphere of violence and gay dominated sex.
2. The vast majority end up converting to their Muslim religion or take their violence back out on the streets, with a 90% failure rate of repeat offenders.
3. They can’t serve Jewish food because they have no time?
4. With 30% of the jail population failing their drug test, they know they can’t have weed and the heavy drugs pass through their system quicker.
5. With a massive review required and a moratorium placed on death penalty cases in Illinois, where DNA has proven large amounts of people innocent but no time or money for the smaller cases “so the tax payer is stuck paying room, board and medical care”.
6. Over 60% of the so called criminals are our modern day Thomas Edison’s, T. Jefferson’s, George Washington and Henry fords are in prison for violating the foreign controlled pharmaceutical companies laws that has been bought and paid for from the FDA, sticking the tax payer with a bill and a liability instead of honoring Ben franklins words that “a civilized county is based on liberty and tolerance.”
7. Punishment factor- although the Christian bible says we are not to judge people, that criminals should be held in a safe humane condition until judgment day instead they do their violent acts violating the moral of Christ to play god and enact punishment.
8. Multibillion dollar contracts are awarded only to those artistians who worship and swear to Hippocrates, these degreed experts use their high technology, drugs and experiments that are carried out by criminals on criminals.
9. Duke University, the Carolina enforcer who wins a presidential medal for destroying these honest decent people only to find out he was the scum behind all the drugs coming into his town. From New York to new Orleans to LA they have a repeated pattern – history – motive to carry out their racist agenda as they claim to be helping ,protecting and serving these blacks
10. They continue to cut Medicare and medi-cade all the while raising the price on health care, our forefathers our parents would not deny the blood of Christ (wine)or a cigarette even in front of a firing squad, yet we are to believe it’s best to close down the liquor stores in the bad neighborhoods and lock up the pharmacies, while in any major city or big office there is always someone pushing the medical monopolies latest miracle drug as they criminalize and demonize the natural plant.

These are just some of the facts that our tax dollars are being wasted on. As they cut back on basic services the law and order budget continue to expand, as they deny a whole population the right of laws, claiming to be exempt from the 10 commandments as they lie cheat and steal from these drug criminals, and although the genetics, the neurological , historical and religious rights of man is ignored, the medical monopoly and their bounty hunters continue to make billions, but they claim they can’t take the profit out of the drug war and each year and new designer drug comes out for our athletes or a new drug hits the streets and the crime and violence guts our cities of its diversity. What will you do when they come after you with the crave and are you so sure it’s just our modern day T. Edison, T. Jefferson and George Washington that are criminals?
Read more in the book ABOUT CHRISTIANS AND FREEDOM @amazon.com

While the regulatory agencies are dragging their feet, much of the medical establishment -- including the American College of Physicians, the American Public Health Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the American Nurses Association -- supports access to medical marijuana.

Obama has since backpeddled faster than a circus clown on a mini-bike when it comes to carrying through on his pledges about medical marijuana and the possibilities of legalization.
God help us all

legalization
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 11/14/2008 - 10:14am

http://washingtontimes.com/news/2008/nov/15/obamas-views-on-drugs/

wow shoulda kept writing instead of getting into computers...

And now I have a profile, I'm no longer anonymous.

:)

"Thanks for the white flag. From the United States' most senior law enforcement official, the man who should be leading the war on drugs, this white flag of surrender will not be reassuring to the millions of parents trying to protect their kids."

So what kind of message is sent when our next President has said he inhaled because,"that was the point"? I guess that would be that they too could be President if they smoked marijuana. The War On Drugs needs to end. Legalize medicinal marijuana and decriminalize recreational use already!