Huh? Conservatives Get Compassionate on White House, Dog Poop and Pot-Smoking

Now that it's been a week or two, how's the Obama administration's freeze out of Fox News going? It's gangbusters for Fox, as the network has used the odd White House strategy of identifying the news organization as "partisan" as a rallying cry for its viewers and supporters. Did the White House think this would blow over quickly? Needless to say, even if it was a move to appeal to its liberal and progressive base, it was a confusing move.

Fortunately for us uneasy many, President Bush is back. This time, he's inspirational, or something. This week, GWB participated in an inspirational business seminar in Texas called "Get Motivated!" where he spoke to something like 50,000 people and told funny anecdotes about his time in the White House and how he now picks up dog poop. Don't you almost miss the guy? Is this a move to rehab Bush's public image? Bush has always been a little odd so it's not surprising this is his choice as his first big speech; he wasn't going to drop some Harvard keynote on Swedish intellectualism in the 18th century among Russian politicians. Regardless, it's interesting to remember the guy's charmingly folksy side once again, without the worry that he's about to bomb Kazakhstan.

Marijuana is back on the national radar and interestingly enough, conservatives aren't totally against its legalization. If conservative nut George Will -- who has apparently worn jeans once in his life, so is clearly a dirty hippie -- thinks we should legalize weed to stop the violence in Mexico, are we headed to a massive legalization of all drugs, including harder ones? Isn't it conservative politics to allow people to do what they want and smoke what they want? And what does modern transparency through technology have to do with this change of heart?

Finally, a few cool things. Maegan moderated a panel with Ted at the #140conf in Hollywood yesterday. You can check out video from the conference here. Maegan is also appearing in next month's US News & World Report, speaking on the Youth Movement and entrepreneurship. Read about it here and pick up a PRINT copy next week!

Listen to the show here, subscribe to the iTunes podcast, or use the Blog Talk Radio player:

Wilshire & Washington, the weekly Blog Talk Radio program that explores the intersection of politics, entertainment, and new media, features co-hosts Ted Johnson, Managing Editor of Variety; conservative blogger Teresa Valdez Klein (www.teresacentric.com), and liberal blogger Maegan Carberry (www.maegancarberry.com). The show airs every Wednesday at 7:30am PST on BlogTalkRadio.com.

Follow Ted Johnson, Maegan Carberry, Teresa Valdez Klein on Twitter: www.twitter.com/maegancarberry

Comments

[anthonytaurus]

Groups like NORML and MPP have done an incredible job of pointing out the problems with the War on Drugs. Those problems have become too numerous and too costly to even be considered any further.

It's a double boost to the coffers of the nation as a whole with a marked reduction in law enforcement expenditures liberating billions and the potential for tax revenues that will generate billions more.

Beyond that, the incompetence of law enforcement has been proven without reproach, with every effort across all 50 states only amounting to about 5% of the total drugs that either enter, or are "manufactured" in, the US. No matter what angle you look at it, the drug war is a pitiful attempt at best.

What's truly sad is that this nation didn't learn the first time. Politicians refuse to take any lessons or direction from history. The repeal of alcohol prohibition should be a blueprint for marijuana legalization. Instead, you have politicians like Rep. Ammiano in CA who haven't taken any lessons from history at all.

The key to legalization is not taxation but regulation or control. We can not even begin to think that we can regulate this market if we don't have the sense to put the black market out of business. We can not do that by promoting prohibition prices AND higher taxes. They knew it in the 1930. How can we not know it now.

[seawolf77]

The idiots can;t afford to police it anymore. It's not interesting, it's sad it took this long.It'll be the same with climate change. They'll oppose it for the same ole assinine reasons until they just get tired of oppossing it. I mean imagine it. We were such a rich country we could put pot smokers in jail to protect everyone from God knows what ( a munchie attack where they go down to the 7/11 and steal all the Twinkies) and now that we are not we'll stop arresting them and even let the ones we have inb jail out. It kinda makes you wax nostalgic for the next depression.

[Garybot]

Take my word for it - it will NOT be the same for climate change - A/K/A Spread the wealth and bankrupt the middle class.