CO-04 (Special Election)
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(R) Greg Lopez
(R) Trisha Calvarese
90%
10%
President (To Win Colorado)
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(D) Joe Biden*
(R) Donald Trump
80%
20%↓
CO-01 (Denver)
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(D) Diana DeGette*
90%
CO-02 (Boulder-ish)
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(D) Joe Neguse*
90%
CO-03 (West & Southern CO)
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(D) Adam Frisch
(R) Jeff Hurd
(R) Ron Hanks
40%
30%
20%
CO-04 (Northeast-ish Colorado)
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(R) Lauren Boebert
(R) Deborah Flora
(R) J. Sonnenberg
30%↑
15%↑
10%↓
CO-05 (Colorado Springs)
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(R) Dave Williams
(R) Jeff Crank
50%↓
50%↑
CO-06 (Aurora)
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(D) Jason Crow*
90%
CO-07 (Jefferson County)
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(D) Brittany Pettersen
85%↑
CO-08 (Northern Colo.)
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(D) Yadira Caraveo
(R) Gabe Evans
(R) Janak Joshi
60%↑
35%↓
30%↑
State Senate Majority
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DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
80%
20%
State House Majority
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DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
95%
5%
June 22, 2011 08:21 PM UTC
30 Comments
It is bizarre and troubling for the DOJ to tell anyone that they will not enforce federal law. If Polis wants to change federal law, he is in the right place, but this isn’t the way.
Why should federal resources be spent, especially considering the deficit, to circumvent state or local law?
I think that was kinda PCG’s point.
Like in the case of Arizona’s immigration law.
Sometimes I forget about that old document–it’s kinda smelly since Bush spent eight years using it for TP.
Like Libya.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43…
I was also unaware that SCOTUS has already declared AZ’s law unconstitutional.
The DOJ has the right to establish prosecutorial priorities. It does not have the right to refuse to enforce the law. There is no legitimacy to the medical marijuana industry until the federal drug laws on marijuana have been amended or repealed. We’re talking about basic principles of federalism and separation of powers. It bugs me that public officials at all levels are willing to ignore the Constitution because medical marijuana seems like a good idea and it’s generating sorely needed revenue for local governments and commercial landlords. Maybe this is good policy (I have yet to be completely convinced), but we’ve gone about implementing it the wrong way.
That would have been a huge surprise to George Washington.
I never can tell if someone really doesn’t get what I’m saying or if they’re deliberately misunderstanding me. But to be clear, the DOJ cannot (and should not, in my opinion) by executive fiat declare they will not enforce a law or make some equivalent declaration couched in slightly less absolute terms that has the same practical effect. The legislative branch is the body that passes the laws. The states are bound by federal laws, and that includes drug laws affecting medical marijuana. Here, we have an executive branch legislating and we have states defying federal law. I don’t like it. It muddles things.
This isn’t abnormal or new; it’s “as designed”, even if it’s not the right ultimate solution.
It’s not like the feds have anything better to do with their money and manpower, right ArapG? You might be interested to know that states, including red ones, have many laws on the books that they don’t enforce anymore, many having to do with private sex acts and such, even though nobody has bothered to change them. I suppose you’ll say, as with Romney on why his health care reform plan, which was a model for the fed plan, that’s a completely different thing. The choice as to whether or not to enforce laws against, say, consenting unmarried adults having sex varying so widely from state to state. Oh wait. None of them enforce those laws.
Decided to ignore the laws for the NLRB?
Every President makes his (or hypothetically her) mark on the country in many ways, including the priorities they assign the Executive departments in rule making, enforcement, PR…
We griped about President Bush’s administration not aggressively pursuing mining violations. We noted the severe drop in enforcement of discrimination complaints.
The fact is, the Federal government doesn’t have enough money to aggressively pursue all violators of all laws. The DEA could spend its budget times two for the foreseeable future going after non-medical drug sales (legal or illegal). Just because medical MJ is easy to target doesn’t mean it has to be targeted.
Choosing where to focus your efforts (and therefore not focus) and telling people that they can ignore a law.
We all hit the ceiling when Bush issued signing statements listing what parts of a bill he was going to ignore. But if people like ignoring a law, then suddenly they’re in favor of the executive ignoring the law.
What Polis & Frank need to do is introduce legislation that drug laws are to be set by the states.
Oh, right – the House leadership wouldn’t bring it up for a vote, and it would get bogged down in the Senate before getting to a vote as well.
50s style Republican boy scout.
Do we always follow that? No. But we should always strive to. And we come closer to that goal when we follow that for the laws we don’t like.
The only person I recall taking that position was Scott McInnis.
Having finally moved back to Colorado after 2+ years away, one of the most obvious changes is the proliferation of ‘green cross’ dispensaries on pretty much every corner in Denver.
Let’s be upfront about it: 95%+ of the ‘patients’ of these ‘clinics’ are not using pot for medicinal purposes, wink-wink.
Why not just legalize it? And let the resulting tax revenues – that Pols somehow thinks argue in favor of this business – keep rolling into state coffers?
In my business, many people are on MM for medical reasons, including end of life pain relief. All of them are benefiting from this medicine that is a natural herb, much like so many other medicines that are derived from herbal sources.
I think your perspective is cynical.
I do agree with your conclusion….legalize it.
Agree witht the conclusion, that is. Maybe we could take all that war on drug money and do something more useful than flushing it down the toilet.
reveals that the vast majority of them appear to be able-bodied males in the 25-45 age range.
This is just the reality I observe on my street, not cynicism.
The true cynicism comes from hiding recreational pot use behind the fig leaf of ‘medicine’, what a joke!
LegalizingMarijuana would take a huge bite out of crime and raise tax revenue.
Nothing disturbs me more than politicians that have smoked, and may still smokew marijuana railing against legalizing it, Some pols think that they are above the law.
I’m glad that Rep. Polis doesnt fit that category.
And that’s simply bullshit.
You can say the system is abused if you like, but to say that there are no medicinal properties to cannabis ignores reality.