New Drug Czar Wants You to Get AIDS [Change]

[KiRby]

Retired Minnesota Congressman Jim Ramstad is rumored to be Barack Obama's new "Drug Czar." The "Drug Czar" is the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (the term "Drug Czar" was invented by Joe Biden!), and his or her job is to release crappy PSAs about marijuana. Here is the problem: Ramstad, a recovering alcoholic, not only opposed medical marijuana and supported prosecution of people who use medical marijuana, but he also consistently opposed funding life-saving needle exchange programs throughout his entire congressional tenure. All these policies are in opposition to crazy liberal things Barack Obama said, during the campaign, about how he'd be less terrible re. drug policy.
Here is a fun fact: The Drug Czar is forbidden, by law, from supporting legalization of any drugs, including for medicinal purposes. This is per the office's congressional mandate, so barring a rather unlikely withdrawal of congressional authorization from the office, any Drug Czar appointed by any president will be required by law to state that medicinal marijuana will make you put your baby in the microwave and decriminalization will lead to your child becoming William S. Burroughs.
So hooray for Jim Ramstad, who will hopefully have not very much to do at all in the Obama administration, especially with most of the "crime-fighting" bits of the Drug Czar's portfolio being the Justice Department's turf, not that Eric Holder is that much better.
(Full disclosure: my stepmother ran for congress against Jim Ramstad a couple years ago! She lost.)

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