What's Behind the Obama Administration's About Face Regarding Medical Marijuana?
 
by Paul Armentano, Deputy Director of NORML

Here was the Obama administration's well publicized position on medical marijuana, circa 2009 (via theOgden memo to all United States attorneys):
The prosecution of significant traffickers of illegal drugs, including marijuana, and the disruption of illegal drug manufacturing and trafficking networks continues to be a core priority in the Department's efforts against narcotics and dangerous drugs, and the Department's investigative and prosecutorial resources should be directed towards these objectives. As a general matter, pursuit of these priorities should not focus federal resources in your States on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana.
 
Here's the Obama administration's not-so-well publicized position on medical marijuana today (via the May 2, 2011 letter sent from the office of the United States Attorney, District of Arizona, to the Arizona Department of Health Services re: the implementation of the voter-approved Medical Marijuana Program): "The United States Attorneys Office ... will vigorously prosecute individuals and organizations that participate in the unlawful manufacturing, distribution and marketing activity involving marijuana, even if such activities are permitted under state law."
In recent weeks, the Administration has reversed its position regarding states' implementation of medical marijuana legislation -- replacing what was once perceived as a 'hands off' approach with one of intimidation.
In April, NORML blogged about the U.S. Department of Justice, particularly U.S. Attorneys Jenny Durkan of Seattle and Michael Ormsby of Spokane, threatening "civil and criminal legal remedies" (read: sanctions) against Washington state citizens, including state employees, who assist with or engage in the production or distribution of medical cannabis, "even if such activities are permitted under state law."
The U.S. Attorneys' threats came in response to an inquiry from Gov. Chris Gregoire who most likely was seeking 'political cover' so that she could publicly 'justify' her veto of legislation (SB 5073) that sought to license and regulate the dispensing of medical cannabis to qualified persons, and would have enacted additional legal protections for patients who voluntarily participated in a statewide registry. The threats worked; Gov. Gregoire cited them in her veto statement Friday.
In fact, the threats worked so well, that in recent days U.S. Attorneys in other states with active medical marijuana programs have begun issuing similar menacing proclamations.
Last week in Colorado, where state regulators have licensed over 800 state-licensed medical cannabis dispensaries, U.S. Attorney John Walsh sent a letter to the state's Attorney General alleging that the federal Justice Department will "vigorously" prosecute individuals or organizations engaged in "unlawful manufacturing and distribution activity involving marijuana, even if such activities are permitted under state law." A spokesman for Walsh's office adds, "In the eye of the federal government, there's only one type of marijuana. And marijuana is a Schedule I controlled [federally prohibited] substance."
Arizona U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke fired off a similarly worded letter this week to Will Humble, the director of the state Department of Health Services, which is overseeing the implementation of Proposition 203. Under the law, which was approved by voters last fall and was enacted on April 15, the state must register qualified patients who have a doctor's recommendation for cannabis and also license dispensaries to provide it to them. However, according to Burke, said dispensaries that are compliant with the state's law will "not [be] protect[ed] from [federal] criminal prosecution, asset forfeiture, and other civil penalties."
In Vermont, U.S. Attorney Tristram Coffin recently warned lawmakers, who are deciding on whether to expand the state's 2004 medical cannabis law to include state-licensed dispensaries, that doing so will place the state in violation of federal law. Coffin's warning appears to be having its desired effect, as several state lawmakers now say that they no longer intend to support the proposed licensing measure.
Finally, in Rhode Island, Gov. Lincoln Chafee announced this week that he is suspending the state's nascent medical marijuana distribution program, set to begin this June. In March, the representatives from the Rhode Island Department of Health selected three applicants to operate the state's first-ever, government licensed medical cannabis dispensaries. (The dispensaries program was initially approved by lawmakers in 2009, but the winning applicants were not decided upon until two years later.)
Predictably, Chafee's abrupt change of heart came after receiving a hand-delivered letter from U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha Friday threatening to prosecute civilly and/or criminally those involved in the dispensary program.
So what's the impetus for the Obama administration's sudden decision to play rhetorical hard ball? NORML Outreach Coordinator and podcaster Russ Belville speculates that the administration's about-face has little to do with patients' use of medical cannabis, and everything to do with the broader political implications associated with allowing states to demonstrate that cannabis can be regulation in a safe, effective, above-ground manner.
"Mr. Obama's ... true intention is to stifle the development of any viable legal cannabis distribution industry. By sending threat letters to Rhode Island and Arizona, states that have created clear and unambiguous laws for medical cannabis providers to follow, it is obvious that Mr. Obama isn't opposed to medical cannabis, per se, but terribly opposed to medical cannabusiness. 
"If (medical cannabusiness) establish (themselves), people will become accustomed to safe, secure, well-run businesses that deliver consistent, reliable, tested cannabis products. They'll appreciate the way these places revitalize sagging economies, provide jobs, and contribute taxes to budget-starved localities. They'll realize all the scaremongering by the government about what would happen if marijuana was legal, even for sick people, was hysterical propaganda. [And] they'll begin to wonder why we don't just legalize cannabis for everyone, create more jobs, raise more revenue, and use these established businesses as the distribution points."