Pubdate: Wed, 04 Dec 2002
Source: MSNBC (US Web)
Copyright: 2002 MSNBC
Contact:  http://msnbc.com/news/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/938
Author: Alex Johnson
Cited: Marijuana Policy Project ( www.mpp.org )
Cited: Common Sense for Drug Policy ( www.csdp.org )
Photo Caption: Drug czar John Walters has argued forcefully that any use of 
marijuana can lead to abuse of harder drugs.

DRUG CZAR ACCUSED OF CAMPAIGN VIOLATIONS

Legal-Marijuana Activists File Action Over Defeat Of Nevada Initiative

Activists fighting to relax marijuana laws called for national drug czar 
John Walters' ouster Wednesday for what they said were his "illegal and 
dishonest activities" in allegedly using taxpayer money to campaign against 
legal-marijuana initiatives last month.

Stung by big defeats at the polls in several states on Election Day, 
legal-marijuana groups signaled Wednesday that they were shifting tactics 
to directly take on Walters, who has made zero tolerance for any use of 
marijuana - even for medical purposes - a cornerstone of federal drug policy.

The Marijuana Policy Project, a national organization financed by three 
wealthy businessmen, including billionaire George Soros, filed a formal 
complaint with the Office of Special Counsel accusing Walters of violating 
the Hatch Act, a 1939 law that bars government employees from many election 
activities.

The filing alleged that in a series of speeches and other appearances, 
Walters explicitly campaigned against Question 9, a voter initiative in 
Nevada that would have legalized possession of as much as 3 ounces of 
marijuana for personal use.

The Nevada initiative failed, drawing only 39 percent support. 
Marijuana-related initiatives in South Dakota, Ohio and Arizona also failed 
by similar margins. Walters made a series of appearances in those states 
before Election Day to denounce any movement to ease legal restrictions on 
possession and use of marijuana and other drugs.

The complaint, announced Wednesday in Washington, D.C., was accompanied by 
a letter that the Marijuana Policy Project, which sponsored Question 9, 
sent to the Nevada secretary of state's office accusing Walters of also 
violating state law by failing to report his activities as campaign 
contributions.

Walters Public Comments Cited

In its filing with the Office of Special Counsel, the Marijuana Policy 
Project noted numerous examples of Walters' speaking out in general against 
drugs in Nevada in the weeks leading up to Election Day. It also cited a 
Las Vegas Review-Journal article that quoted Walters at one appearance as 
specifically promising opponents of Question 9 that "we will stand with you."

Bruce Mirken, a spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project, said in an 
interview that Walters "broke the law by using the authority of his office 
to conduct a political campaign, and it was absolutely a campaign of lies 
and distortions designed to frighten people."

The group's action would appear to have little chance to succeed, however. 
The Hatch Act specifically exempts Cabinet officials, like Walters, and 
others who are subject to Senate confirmation from its provisions.

Noting the exemption for Cabinet members, Thomas Riley, a spokesman for 
Walters, said Walters was "going to talk about drug legalization whether 
there's a ballot initiative or not. Even if that was campaigning, he's 
allowed to."

Even so, Riley disputed activists' contention that Walters targeted 
specific ballot questions in his appearances before last month, saying part 
of Walters' job was "to oppose efforts to legalize drugs."

"The idea that he should say, 'Well, I'm not going to go to this particular 
state because ... gosh, they have a ballot initiative this fall' ... is 
ridiculous," Riley said in an interview. "It's the Office of National Drug 
Control Policy. It's on its face silly. He was just doing his regular job."

New Strategy For Movement

The filing seems geared more toward shifting the focus of the 
legal-marijuana movement away from the ballot defeats last month toward 
activists' campaign to depict Walters as a right-wing ideologue who is 
failing at his job, which Mirken said "is to explore drug policies that 
work rather than breaking the law to defend a bankrupt and failed system."

Kevin Zeese, president of Common Sense for Drug Policy, an advocacy group 
that has been heavily involved in efforts to promote medical use of 
marijuana, acknowledged that as a lawyer, he was "not that confident about 
the legal issues."

"I think theyire raising important issues," Zeese said. "Whether or not 
they're going to be able to pass a legal test is a separate issue, and if I 
had to guess, Iid guess that they're going to lose. But I'm glad they're 
raising the issue, because something needs to be done to draw the public's 
attention to the issue that their tax dollars are being spent."

Mirken defended the sometimes-bitter tone his organization adopted in 
announcing Wednesdayis filing. Rob Kampia, executive director of the 
Marijuana Policy Project, said the legal-marijuana movement was "declaring 
war on the drug czar," and while Mirken said he was uncomfortable with that 
kind of rhetoric, it was justified by the government's depiction of its own 
activities as a "war on drugs."

"Well, he started it," Mirken said of Walters, who he said had backed 
legal-marijuana activists into a corner with his aggressive opposition. 
"... At a certain point, you have to say enough is enough."

"We were handed a situation not of our choosing." Mirken said. "We will 
make the best of it as an opportunity to educate the public about why Mr. 
Walters is wrong, about why the things that he was saying were untrue, 
sometimes flagrantly so, and make the best of the situation that we can."
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