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| Coalition Criticizes Drug Czar Nominee |
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Posted by FoM on September 07, 2001 at 16:40:47 PT By Donna Leinwand Source: USA Today 
A coalition of civil liberties and public health groups has called for close scrutiny of drug czar nominee John Walters when he goes before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.The Coalition for Compassionate Leadership on Drug Policy criticizes Walters for dismissing sentencing disparities among racial groups as ''urban myths'' and for advocating the use of courts to force drug users into treatment programs. The coalition, which says it does not endorse or oppose nominees, included its complaints in a report issued Thursday. The report heats up an already simmering debate over Walters, a former deputy in the first Bush administration's Office on National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). ''Mr. Walters' record isn't generally in sync with the more balanced approach that is gaining ground in Congress and with the public,'' said David Carle, spokesman for Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. Leahy and the committee's ranking Republican, Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, have sponsored a bill that would devote more federal funds to prevention and treatment. The coalition, which includes the NAACP and the American Civil Liberties Union, supports the type of approach proposed by Leahy and Hatch. ''Mr. Walters is a hard-liner amongst hard-liners on the war on drugs,'' said coalition member Vincent Schiraldi, president of the Justice Policy Institute. ''He remains a cheerleader for the curative virtues of the prison cell over treatment programs,'' he said. ''He's not only out of step with America on this one, he's even out of step with other conservatives.'' The Bush administration said it stands behind its nominee. ''The president has a balanced approach to the problem of drug abuse in America that emphasizes both treatment and prevention,'' White House spokeswoman Anne Womack said. ''We're confident that John Walters will do an excellent job of implementing the president's vision.'' A spokesman for Walters said he would have no comment before his hearing. Walters worked at the drug czar's office from January 1989 until February 1993 under drug czar William Bennett, first as chief of staff and later as deputy director for supply reduction. In a statement to the Judiciary Committee, Walters emphasized his commitment to prevention and treatment during his tenure at the drug czar's office. ''In all of my work at the ONDCP, I was a steadfast advocate for a balanced anti-drug effort,'' Walters said in the questionnaire. ''If anything, my tenure at the office marked a rebalancing of federal resources with greater funding direct to prevention and treatment.'' However, coalition members cite an article published in March in The Weekly Standard, a conservative magazine, in which Walters wrote: ''What really drives the battle against law enforcement and punishment, however is not a commitment to treatment, but the widely held view that (1) we are imprisoning too many people for merely possessing illegal drugs, (2) drug and other criminal sentences are too long and harsh, and (3) the criminal justice system is unjustly punishing young black men. These are among the great urban myths of our time.'' The coalition disagrees with Walters's remarks. ''Jail is not in the best interest of the American people,'' says coalition member Mohammad Akhter of the American Public Health Association. ''Treatment is.'' Complete Title: Coalition Criticizes Drug Czar Nominee Urges Close Scrutiny of 'Hard-Liner Amongst Hard-Liners on the War on Drugs' Source: USA Today (US) Related Articles & Web Sites: CCLDP Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice Groups Show Concern on Anti-Drug Bid A Debatable War on Drugs A Quagmire for Our Time - American Prospect Bush Nominates Drug-Policy Chief Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #8 posted by FoM on September 07, 2001 at 22:10:42 PT |
| Hi firedog, You might want to register your name. You don't have to but if you don't want anyone to use your name I would recommend it and if you don't want to that's fine. http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/register.shtml I am an anti number person in the sense that I don't place much important on it. I'd rather look for the news and read the comments and what will be will be. We are growing for anyone that is interested. The hits for August were: 1,415,838 Total Hits This month because of this tragedy it is very high too. I appreciate all the comments and support very much. It wouldn't be happening without all of you. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #7 posted by firedog on September 07, 2001 at 22:00:10 PT |
| I'm not surprised to see the articles posted here get rehashed in other publications. It seems like this has happened quite a few times in the last month or two. I'm sure that for reporters in the know, this is a great site for doing research on the state of cannabis in the world today. I don't know of any other site that covers cannabis so well and so intelligently. Come to think of it, I don't know of any other sites that cover a particular topic in such depth and in such a timely manner. A lot of them don't update very often, so you can't get the latest news. I would be willing to bet that this site is quietly becoming a strong influence in the community of those who care about cannabis, meaning those who care about it as a sacred herb, an amazing medicine, and a powerful tool for enhancing creativity. In short, all those that feel that having cannabis available would improve the world and that keeping it from the people is harming the world. I can't imagine what the world would be like if cannabis were legalized today... I think if properly harnessed, the world would improve beyond the scope of anyone's imagination. Like the Kottonmouth Kings say, "guaranteed there'd be peace not greed!" As always, - Firedog [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #6 posted by bruce42 on September 07, 2001 at 21:13:31 PT |
| I have no doubt that if the government paid their media puppets to eat cat shit and tell everyone else to eat it, McDonald's would have McCrap on the menu in a week. Switching gears entirely... I was surfing around a bit to see how well repressed the feds were keeping the Rainbow raid and I stumbled upon an article about the DEA raiding the Sioux at Pine Ridge (on MSNBC of all places!) The article is actually pretty good (for a bought out news org)http://www.msnbc.com/news/616149.asp?0si=- I wonder if they slow because the government needs to proofread the articles to make sure nothing bad is said about their DEA boys? And as a side note, I caught the story about the Sioux on NPR (national public radio), one of the few widely broadcast commercial free news sources. Anyway, go to npr.org and do a search for hemp. It only brings up the archive for the story on the first raid but other interesting hemp stories are there. I love listening to the news because I know whats happening a week before the mainstream news orgs air it. peace [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #5 posted by dddd on September 07, 2001 at 19:55:37 PT |
| That's a good one!!!dddd [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #4 posted by freedom fighter on September 07, 2001 at 19:34:42 PT |
| We only need 500 good men to bring the United States of Amerika down and fast! ff [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by dddd on September 07, 2001 at 19:25:36 PT |
| ..who thought Bush mighty lead,,,,are the same ones who are excited about their tax "refund",or "rebate",,,which is tragicly hilarious in reality it is merely the return of stolen funds,that will be re-stolen in next years tax return....It's alot like the car sales promotions that say stuff like;"get $2000.00 dollars CASH back from Dodge when you buy a Ram ClubCab..".......... ...now,,if we consider that there are people who are actually thinking that they are somehow getting "cash back",when buying the Dodge, then there are also plenty of embicles say stuff like,,;"Yup,,,Bush is givin' the money back to thuh peepul".........Do you remember the medias' super blanket coverage of this cheap tax scam?It was at the top of the news ,,,simultaneously,,,everywhere.......And that's another way too obvious sign that the media is owned,and operated by one entity, the headlines are almost always the same on all networks,,as if they all somehow coincidently knew what the most important news was.....maybe ...this is all some weird illusion that only I can see in my strange little world... weirdddd [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by Lehder on September 07, 2001 at 18:38:43 PT |
| Treatment for what? Marijuana? KMA. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by Robbie on September 07, 2001 at 18:28:42 PT |
| ''He [Walters] remains a cheerleader for the curative virtues of the prison cell over treatment programs,'' he said. ''He's not only out of step with America on this one, he's even out of step with other conservatives.'' The Bush administration said it stands behind its nominee. That doesn't sound like someone who is looking to reform anything. [ Post Comment ] |
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