If left only in the hands of U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the United States would probably see the marching in of the war on drugs 2.0, one that would embrace the propaganda largely responsible for driving marijuana into the underground in the first place, while borrowing backward philosophies from the nation’s former leaders in an attempt to create the illusion that telling kids to “Just Say No” will put and end to drug problems.
Over the past few months, Sessions has hinted at the coming of a federal crackdown against the legal marijuana industry because he believes legal pot is contributing to a surge of violent activity as well as introducing more people to the dangerous world of opioid abuse.
However, according to Department of Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly, the new administration has no interest in waging a war against weed – at least not along the borders.
In a recent interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Kelly told host Chuck Todd that when it comes to fighting the War on Drugs, marijuana was no longer of any concern.
“Yeah, marijuana is not a factor in the drug war,” Kelly said.
“It’s three things,” he later added. “Methamphetamine. Almost all produced in Mexico. Heroin. Virtually all produced in Mexico. And cocaine that comes up from further south.”
Kelly then went on to explain that the three drugs, in conjunction with opioids, were responsible for claiming the lives of over 50,000 people in 2015, a problem that cost the nation $250 billion. But he failed to mention the almost 570,000 deaths associated with the use of alcohol and tobacco.
The White House maintains that marijuana prohibition is “in the interest of public health and safety.”
Despite the words pouring out of Kelly’s mouth on Sunday, there is still a possibility that Sessions could eventually lean on federal law when it comes to dealing with the legal cannabis industry. It was just last week that the Attorney General fired off a letter to a legion of prosecutors and Justice Department heads announcing the formation of a task force that would reevaluate existing policies, including those pertaining to marijuana.
But whatever Sessions plans to do about legal weed, Kelly doesn’t think it should involve bringing the hammer down on people who use drugs.
“The solution is not arresting a lot of users,” he said.
“The solution,” he continued, “is a comprehensive drug demand reduction program in the United States that involves every man and woman of goodwill. And then rehabilitation. And then law enforcement. And then getting at the poppy fields and the coca fields in the south.
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