cannabisnews.com: Drug Agency Nominee Talks Tough Enforcement





Drug Agency Nominee Talks Tough Enforcement
Posted by FoM on July 16, 2001 at 22:44:24 PT
By Donna Leinwand, USA Today
Source: USA Today
Rep. Asa Hutchinson, a former federal prosecutor who's known as a "drug warrior," is expected to win approval from the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday as President Bush's nominee to head the Drug Enforcement Administration.Hutchinson, a conservative Republican from Arkansas who helped prosecute President Clinton in the 1999 impeachment trial and sent Clinton's half-brother Roger to prison in 1984 on cocaine charges, promises aggressive and fair enforcement of drug laws.
If confirmed by the full Senate, he says he would run an agency that would not use racial profiling, would seek long prison sentences for traffickers, and would push for more money for air patrols over Latin American and Caribbean drug-running routes.Although a tough talker when it comes to enforcement, Hutchinson says he supports education and treatment efforts to reduce demand in the USA for illegal drugs.Hutchinson will testify before the committee today. Although he is expected to face some tough questioning, he is not expected to face serious opposition.All but two of the 16 Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee, on which Hutchinson serves, have signed a letter supporting his confirmation.John Conyers, D-Mich., the ranking member of the House committee, will join Hutchinson's brother, Tim, a Republican senator from Arkansas, in testifying in his support."I think probably a lot of Asa's fervor on this issue developed from his life experiences," his brother says. "We had a nephew who committed suicide under the influence of drugs. Most families have been hit in some way by drugs at some time."Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., is likely to ask Hutchinson if he will support redirecting U.S. drug policy from emphasizing law enforcement to focusing on treatment and prevention. Leahy and the committee's ranking Republican, Orrin Hatch of Utah, have introduced a bill that would provide grants to establish drug-treatment alternatives to prison.Hutchinson has taken a hard line on drug users. He says addicts who are arrested and ordered to enter a treatment program by a court fare better than those who enter treatment voluntarily.More drug courts are needed "where the prison sentence is hanging over a person's head — an addict's head or a user's head," Hutchinson said a year ago during an appearance on CNN's Crossfire. "Many of the addicts testify that what made them confront their drug use was a police officer arresting them."As a congressman, Hutchinson sponsored legislation last year to spend more money to shut down and clean up methamphetamine labs that had set up shop throughout Arkansas, the Midwest and Texas. He voted last year to increase the penalties for possessing so-called club drugs, including Ecstasy and the "date-rape drug" GHB, gamma hydroxybutyrate. And he supported President Clinton's $1.3 billion "Plan Colombia," an aid package that helped arm Colombia's military to fight traffickers and to eradicate drug crops. The Asa Hutchinson File   Age: 50; born Dec. 3, 1950, in Bentonville, Ark. Education: B.S., Bob Jones University, 1972; J.D., University of Arkansas School of Law, 1975.Career: Bentonville, Ark., city attorney, 1977-78; U.S. Attorney, 1982-85; private practice attorney with Karr & Hutchinson in Fort Smith, Ark.; first elected to Congress in 1996. Served as a House manager during the impeachment trial of President Clinton.Family: Married to Susan Burrell Hutchinson. They have four children: Asa III, Sarah, John, and Seth; and one grandchild, Asa IV. Brother is Sen. Tim Hutchinson, R-Ark. Key issues: Privacy protection, prohibitions on racial profiling, legal assistance for victims of domestic violence; cleaning up illegal methamphetamine labs. Source: USA Today Research Note: Hutchinson says addicts forced by a court to enter a treatment program fare better than those who enter voluntarily.Source: USA Today (US)Author: Donna Leinwand, USA TodayPublished: July 16, 2001Copyright: 2001 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.Contact: editor usatoday.comWebsite: http://www.usatoday.com/Related Articles:Asa and Mehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9898.shtmlPresident Names Congressman To Drug Agency http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9653.shtmlRepublican Congressman To Head Drug Agency http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9635.shtml 
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Comment #9 posted by Phyro_the_Dragon on July 17, 2001 at 16:31:57 PT
Look's like more fun (not)
Show me to thw exit PLEASE!
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Comment #8 posted by Massachusetts on July 17, 2001 at 09:19:48 PT
wishing we lost the civil war
Great. A bigoted, hillbilly, Arkansas redneck from Bob Jones U. Why do I have to be in the same country with these inbred hate-mongers? I hope all of you guys that voted Republican are happy with what you got......... Look at this....he almost forgot to use morally-charged slurs to discuss policy........----------------------------More drug courts are needed "where the prison sentence is hanging over a person's head — an addict's head or a user's head," Hutchinson said a year ago during an-----------------------------You know what the real travesty is here. All of the Democrats are lining up to support this guy. I hope you guys that voted Democrat are happy, too. They all know that invasive, controlling drug policy means bigger government....MORE FOR THEM! Try Libertarian or Green next time..........    
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Comment #7 posted by Jose Melendez on July 17, 2001 at 08:30:49 PT:
getting "tough", eh?
Asa Hutchinson is going to be tough on some drugs.Tough on Cannabis, whose users are generally peaceful, and therefore are easier to arrest and incarcerate because they will not fight back as will users of, say alcohol. Plus, potheads are not inclined to write Congress and complain, nor will we register to vote in droves, because, ummm... I forgot. ;)Tough on crack, whose users are generally Black or Latino, and are less likely to vote against funding prisons and pensions instead of schools and accurate textbooks, especially when mandatory minimums strip them of their rights to vote in the first place. But less tough on personally known friends, coworkers or relatives who may dabble occasionally in powder cocaine, because it is not a problem, really. Right Asa?Tough on methamphetamines, whose users are actively looking for the next and best high, because they know they are being lied to about marijuana by the pharmaceutical company funded Partnership for a Drug Free America, and they wonder what else must be cool to get high on because it's on TV.If the current lawsuit settlement talks are any indication, he will not be tough on tobacco companies, at least in the administration position for which he is applying. No getting tough on the companies that developed and marketed filtered cigarettes as if they were safer, when the opposite is known to be true.And the answer to people who note that pharmaceutical companies are actively marketing Prozac and Ritalin to kids through their parents and doctors, as if those and other "legal" drugs should be an accepted part of every day life? "Tough."
Arrest the Prohibition Industry - buy, sell, or quit drugs online  narcosoft.com
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Comment #6 posted by Lehder on July 17, 2001 at 07:06:48 PT
Money - Power - 'Truth'
http://www.searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/paid.html
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Comment #5 posted by kaptinemo on July 17, 2001 at 06:23:11 PT:
Another link you'll find of interest
Barry and the Boyshttp://www.barryandtheboys.com/But buckle up, first; it's a wild ride. And none too safe to take.
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Comment #4 posted by kaptinemo on July 17, 2001 at 06:00:11 PT:
I stand corrected
Hutchinson was not the AG of Arknasas...but he was (supposed) to be a Prosecutor. Doesn't look like he did much prosecution...when it came to Mena, taht is.From ASA AND THE DRUG SMUGGLERShttp://www.madcowprod.com/indexa.html"According to the Arkansas State Police Commander in charge of Mena, Finis Duvall, on at least one occasion then-US Attorney Asa Hutchinson ‘took care’ of a Mena legal entanglement for Barry Seal that has never been surfaced in the press.According to Duvall, who was there, the Arkansas state police didn't even try to develop a case against the Mena drug smuggling, because it was well known that it was being 'protected' by US attorney Hutchinson."We always knew we couldn't prosecute Barry Seal, no matter what we got on him, because of the politics involved in the Western Judicial District," the crusty Finis Duvall told us.Hungry? Want some more?"Then there are Hutchinson’s recent business dealings with drug smugglers. Recently a Barry Seal drug smuggling associate, Michael Roy Fugler, took a company called Netivation public. Netivation.com (NASDAQ: NTVN) portrays itself as an Internet public policy and political Web site, offering a package of fundraising services to candidates and campaigns. The Virginia State Democratic Party, for example, raised money for Netivation.com to produce Web sites for its candidates, and Netivation.com received a percentage of any campaign contribution made to candidates via the Web pages. It also publishes the US Congress Factbook, and has a major Internet site for campaign fundraising.One question might be: what does a drug smuggler have to do with the US Congress Factbook? But wait...there’s more. After going public, Netivation turned around and immediately signed as their initial marketing "poster boy" none other than Arkansas Congressman Asa Hutchinson. Hutchinson, of course, before becoming the marketing "poster boy" for a company drug smuggler Barry Seal's associate Michael Fugler took public, had been the U.S. Attorney for the Western Judicial District in Arkansas, which encompasses Mena.That’s enough for a grand jury, right there. It provides direct and concrete evidence that what's been called "the goings-on at Mena" reveal exactly what the "conspiracy theorists" have been loudly proclaiming for a decade: the visible efforts of a huge and largely invisible organization.Paying off a favor isn’t, of course, illegal.But abetting drug smuggling, unfortunately for Mr. Hutchinson, is.This is what's going to run the anti-drug agency. And most Americans are completely oblivious to it. Too busy scratching themselves, baa-aahing...and wondering why their anuses are so sore.
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Comment #3 posted by kaptinemo on July 17, 2001 at 05:29:04 PT:
Some questions they won't *dare* ask
"Mr. Hutchinson, you were the Attorney General of Arkansas during the infamous Iran/Contra episode in the 1980's. During this time, a base to support these operations was established in Mena, Arkansas. Several Arkansas State Troopers have given sworn testimony that this operation was involved in smuggling massive quantities of cocaine into the Southern United States, by persons in the employ of the United States federal Government. These State Troopers had notified your office of the existence of this drug smuggling operation.""Why, sir, if you are such a staunch DrugWarrior, did you turn a blind eye to these claims? And why, sir, did you not investigate them? Particularly since these claims also seemed to involve the deaths of two teenagers who died under the most suspicious of circumstances?"The Boys on the Tracks:http://maraleveritt.com/The Boys on the Tracks Book Excerpt: A new look at the 1987 deaths of two Sal County Teens.http://arktimes.com/991105coverstory.htmlAsa and Me "I've wondered for years: What does Hutchinson know about Arkansas's biggest drug smuggler? And when did he know it?"http://arktimes.com/010525coverstoryb.html The Crimes of Menahttp://www.rdfrost.com/Reference/Politics/Mena.htmlMake no mistake about it: Hutchinson is being paid off for his (albeit, small) role in the Mena drug smuggling operation. That this man will soon be in charge of the very organization which has the job of 'fighting drugs' is the height of hypocrisy. And shows precisely, to anyone with the eyes to see and a mind to think, just how absolutely bogus the war on (Some) Drugs is. 
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Comment #2 posted by lookinside on July 17, 2001 at 04:44:05 PT:
they just don't get it...
another nail in the shrub's political coffin.....
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Comment #1 posted by Dan B on July 17, 2001 at 04:27:47 PT:
'Nuff said
B.S., Bob Jones University, 1972Yeah, from what I hear a lot of B.S. comes out of Bob Jones University.Dan B
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