Barney Frank Criticizes Obama Administration On Medical Marijuana Raids

Retiring Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) sharply criticized the Obama administration's recent raids of medical marijuana dispensaries in states where its use is legal.

"I think it's bad politics and bad policy," he told The Hill in an interview Friday. "I'm very disappointed. I think it's a grave mistake." He added that he had brought the criticism to the president.

Frank has introduced the Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act, which would prohibit federal actions in state medical marijuana programs. He also doesn't smoke marijuana, once telling an interviewer, "Do you think I’ve ever had an abortion? I don’t play poker on the Internet, either."

The administration's crackdown on marijuana dispensaries has drawn criticism from other lawmakers. Nine House members -- eight Democrats and one Republican -- signed a letter in October calling on the Justice Department to end its targeting of cannabis dispensaries.

Comedians have taken notice too. Jimmy Kimmel, speaking at the White House Correspondent's Dinner Saturday, quipped, "What is with the marijuana crackdown? Seriously, what is the concern? We will deplete the nation's Funyun supply?" He continued, "Pot smokers vote too. Sometimes a week after the election, but they vote."

The Justice Department has conducted over 170 SWAT-style raids in 9 medical marijuana states, according to Americans For Safe Access, a pro-medical marijuana group.

DEA and IRS agents raided Oaksterdam University, an Oakland, Calif.-based trade school known as the 'Princeton of Pot,' earlier in April. Oaksterdam's founder, Richard Lee, decried the crackdown in an interview with HuffPost. "This is one battle of a big war," he said, "and here's thousands of battles going on all over."

During the 2008 presidential campaign, then-candidate Barack Obama was asked about medical marijuana by a Southern Oregon newspaper. "I'm not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws on this issue," he said.

Obama was asked about his stance on medical marijuana recently by Rolling Stone, and he clarified that during the campaign he had said that he would not prioritize prosecuting people using medical marijuana. "I never made a commitment that somehow we were going to give carte blanche to large-scale producers and operators of marijuana -- and the reason is, because it's against federal law," he said.

Comments

[MarKSki0149]

10:20 AM on 05/05/2012

Barack Obama should issue an arrest warrant for God for producing and growing Marijuana. Mabey send the seal team to take him or her down!

[Burkelbile]

06:05 PM on 05/03/2012

Colorado is the only "swing state" left that Obama has a shot of carrying this November.

No way does he have a shot at Arizona, Missouri, West Virginia, Florida - not even Iowa.

Colorado is Obama's only hope of getting over the top in electoral votes - (do the math)
and he's blowing it by cracking down on medical marijuana. He may lose just enough votes to hand Colorado (and possibly the election)
to Willard.

Michelle needs to smack him around and tell him to wake UP,
unless she's secretly looking forward to moving the family this January.

[Mike Parent]

09:34 AM on 05/03/2012

The Controlled Substances Act also provides for a rulemaking process by which the United States Attorney General can reschedule cannabis administratively. These proceedings represent the only means of legalizing medical cannabis without an act of Congress. Rescheduling supporters have often cited the lengthy petition review process as a reason why cannabis is still illegal.[3] The first petition took 22 years to review, and the second took 7 years. In 2002, the Coalition for Rescheduling Cannabis filed a third petition.

[Mike Parent]

09:25 AM on 05/03/2012

Mr. President, you didn't have to do what you did, you chose to, after you said you wouldn't! And you chose to do it in a totally heavy handed way. You're pandering to someone. Who is so powerful that the leader of the free world has to pander to them?
Dems and Reps, different pages from the same bad book!

[Mailman]

11:55 PM on 05/01/2012

Go back to where ever you were.

[donnyraindog]

10:31 PM on 04/30/2012

Barney Frank is intelligent ,witty,gay and courageous in other words the complete opposite of your average Republican hence all the anomosity.

[Grichde]

10:17 PM on 04/30/2012

It's a war on states rights.

[Jayne Knous]

12:55 AM on 05/01/2012

You are exactly right, a war on states rights & the citizens of this country. Hard to be a dictator if everybody has rights. Time to talk impeachment folks.

[Theatrixnyc]

09:54 PM on 05/01/2012

Right after we try Bush/Cheney for War Crimes.....and link them together with Rupert (FOX) Murdoch, and all of his legal troubles.

[BeasleysMom]

10:11 PM on 04/30/2012

It is this kind of give and take within the Democratic party that results in sane policy creation.  Something the gop knows nothing about as they all march in lockstep under the direction of their corporate sponsors.

[average dude]

02:19 PM on 05/06/2012

This is NOT give and take, this is just take. The Obama camp has shown that they will not come to terms with any type of medical distribution system, no matter how well regulated under state law. So, no give there. They have also shown that they will use every tool they have to undermine state law on this issue, including seizing properties, threats to public officials, IRS attacks on state law compliant distrabution centers, and forcing banks to deny banking options to said businesses. So I ask you, where is the give and take?

[Bantychick]

09:55 PM on 04/30/2012

Too many people abusing the Medical pot thing trying to cash in.

[Coinspinner]

10:40 PM on 04/30/2012

Well we are a capitalistic society.

Tell me which industry has people that don't try to "cash in" and that includes health care, pills, hell even emergency surgery people "cash in on".

[mikejames697]

02:10 AM on 05/01/2012

Bantychick... what are you, Beaver Cleavers mom?

[Thinking Clearly]

09:33 PM on 04/30/2012

The dangerousness of marijuana is overblown. The addiction factors that have been unscrupulously associated with it are just plain lies that have been perpetrated to serve US interests and ballooning budget renewal requests.

The road to removing marijuana from the Federal Drug Schedules has been purposely littered with confusing regulations that duplicate needed approvals among more than one agency. Compliance's with International drug treaties (which were created through the UN by the US) make the contemplation of legalizing marijuana by any one individual a horror story. Witness the fact that recent medical studies and the US Government itself (Health and Human Services) has admitted medical value for marijuana as far back as 2001 yet no one has had the willingness or motivation to tackle it. The lies have been told repeatedly for many years too long. Studies that investigate benefits are designed to be disapproved or hopelessly stalled.

Barney Frank has much courage and my thankfulness for his tenacity. Other career politicians in Washington should realize that Americans are tired of this issue being relegated to yet another back burner til the "time is right". This issue has great bearing on issues of Life Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness and respect for Rule of Law and the Constitution.

The time is right for this issue to be dealt with now. Families, lives and livelihoods are being ruined daily. Over a trillion dollars have been wasted. Prisons overflow. What are we waiting for?

[beckpod1]

08:41 PM on 04/30/2012

Political football the not-so-strong-leader President Obama would rather kick down the road...for someone else to do the RIGHT thing...!

[hess1745]

08:19 PM on 04/30/2012

Why is the president moving drug policy backwards? Real progressive.

[RMForbes]

08:29 PM on 04/30/2012

He has no choice, over the years since Nixon added cannabis to Schedule 1 our congress critters have added several new Federal Laws and Statutory Regulations that actually prevent any Federal Agency or Official from removing cannabis from Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substance Act at all. The federal agency that is responsible for the actual science needed to remove cannabis would have to break federal law to tell the truth about cannabis. Harry J Anslinger is laughing at us from the grave. It's disgusting what the failed war on drugs had done to America.

[FunkyP]

09:32 PM on 04/30/2012

All President Obama need do is start by making hemp legal by executive order. Despite his drug czars position on the matter, hemp should not be classified as a drug at all, and President Obama has it within his power to change that.
If he really wants to.

[Thinking Clearly]

10:09 PM on 04/30/2012

Individuals acting rightly and independently in a good and just cause can always make a difference and a change. I do not agree with the hopelessness of it all. Don't tell me that Obama speaking up on an issue favorable to most Americans will not make a difference. We don't elect Presidents for what they can't do.

Yes he can.

Forward.

[Grichde]

07:40 PM on 04/30/2012

To bad there is no repect for states rights.

[RMForbes]

08:19 PM on 04/30/2012

Especially since states rights has become code for racism and corporate power. We need a strong central government to protect the rights of minorities and the American people from the overwhelming power of big money interests.

[Steelsil]

10:02 PM on 04/30/2012

Are marijuana users a minority?  Certainly cancer patients are.

[mikejames697]

02:13 AM on 05/01/2012

How the hell, do you get the rights of minorities, from Barney Frank and MMJ?

[JBaker]

08:55 PM on 04/30/2012

Oh, but for the good old days of segregation and lynchings!

[Grichde]

10:21 PM on 04/30/2012

Big jump from marijuana to lynching. Got anything else?

[Cratewasher]

07:24 PM on 04/30/2012

Obama, the new Nancy Reagan...

[Cratewasher]

07:23 PM on 04/30/2012

Barney is right.