Pot times July 15, 2005
I-148 Group Seeks Probe Of Drug Czar
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1116/a04.htmlNewshawk: End Marijuana Prohibition http://www.mpp.org
Pubdate: Fri, 15 Jul 2005 I-148 GROUP SEEKS PROBE OF DRUG CZAR
Source: Missoulian (MT)
Copyright: 2005 Missoulian
Contact:
oped@missoulian.com
Website: http://www.missoulian.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/720
Note: Only prints letters from within its print circulation area
Author: Jennifer McKee, of the Missoulian State Bureau
Cited: Marijuana Policy Project (www.mpp.org)
Cited: Initiative 148 ( www.montanacares.org/
)
Cited: Office of National Drug Control Policy (www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov
)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm
(Cannabis - Medicinal)
HELENA - The group behind Montana's medical marijuana law wants the state to
investigate why a commander of the nation's war on drugs didn't disclose the
cost of his tax-funded Montana trip last year when he campaigned against the
ballot measure.
The Marijuana Policy Project filed a complaint in Helena District Court on
Thursday asking Judge Jeffrey Sherlock to force the state's commissioner of
political practices to investigate why Scott Burns, deputy director of the White
House Office of National Drug Control Policy, didn't make public the cost of his
trip to Montana last October.
Burns visited several cities in the state speaking out against Initiative 148,
which passed by a 62 percent to 38 percent margin and legalized the use of
medical marijuana in Montana.
A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision invalidated all state medical
marijuana laws. However, Montana Attorney General Mike McGrath has said
state and local law enforcement will continue to uphold Montana's citizen-passed
law.
That means Montanans who have permission from their doctors to use marijuana
will not be prosecuted by local authorities, but could face federal prosecution.
The Marijuana Policy Project supported I-148 and filed required disclosures with
the commissioner's office detailing how much money the group spent promoting the
measure.
Steve Fox, director of government relations for the group, said Burns was
certainly campaigning against I-148 in October when he traveled to Montana, but
he never disclosed how much tax money he spent trying to defeat the measure.
"The campaign finance laws are there so the people of the state understand
how much money is being spent," Fox said.
Fox said it's part of Burns' job description to oppose any effort to legalize
marijuana, so it's not disputed that Burns was in the state only weeks before
the election to campaign against I-148.
The group filed a complaint in February with Gordon Higgins, commissioner of
political practices, alleging the Office of National Drug Control and Policy was
operating as a de facto political action committee in the campaign and should be
required to file records showing how much money it spent sending Burns to
Montana.
Higgins responded in May with a letter saying Burns was immune from Montana
campaign finance laws because he was a federal official doing his job. The
letter agreed with a legal opinion from the White House drug office, which
Higgins requested.
Higgins said he could not publicly comment on the complaint.
Fox countered that saying federal officials are immune from state laws is like
saying the mailman doesn't have to follow Montana traffic laws when he delivers
the mail.
"We're not trying to say the drug czar can't campaign," Fox said.
"It's merely a fact that if a federal official chooses to come to the
state, they should respect the state's regulations."
Fox maintains that Higgins didn't adequately investigate whether Burns needed to
file campaign finance disclosures because he dropped the matter once he
concluded Burns was exempt from state campaign laws.
The complaint asks the judge to force Higgins to fully investigate whether Burns
was actually campaigning. If so, Fox said, the commissioner would have
little choice but to force Burns to file disclosure documents.
The lawsuit also asks the White House drug office to pay the group's attorney
fees.
