U.S. House Passes Bill on Drug Cartels Growing Marijuana in National Parks (Press Release)

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 7, 2010
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media//at//leap//dot//cc

U.S. House Passes Bill on Drug Cartels Growing Marijuana in National Parks

Cops and Border Patrol Agents Say the Only Real Solution is Marijuana Legalization

WASHINGTON, DC --  The U.S. House passed a bill today directing the White House drug czar's office to develop a plan for stopping Mexican drug cartels from growing marijuana in U.S. national parks.  A group of police officers and judges who fought on the front lines of the "war on drugs" is pointing out that the only way to actually end the violence and environmental destruction associated with these illicit grows is to legalize and regulate the marijuana trade.

"No matter how many grow operations are eradicated or cartel leaders are arrested, there will always be more people willing to take the risk to earn huge profits in the black market for marijuana," said Richard Newton, a former U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent who is now a speaker for the group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. "My years of experience in federal drug enforcement tell me that only when we legalize and regulate marijuana will we put a stop to this madness.  After all, you don't see too many Mexican wine cartels growing grapes in our national parks, and that's because alcohol is legal."

The bill, H. Res. 1540, which was passed by the House via voice vote, points out many of the harms of the current prohibition policy that leads to drug cartels growing marijuana in U.S. national parks, including that

* drug traffickers spray considerable quantities of unregulated chemicals, pesticides, and fertilizers;

* drug traffickers divert streams and other waterways to construct complex irrigation systems;

* it costs the Federal Government $11,000 to restore one acre of forest on which marijuana is being cultivated;

* drug traffickers place booby traps that contain live shotgun shells on marijuana plantations;

* on October 8, 2000, an 8-year-old boy and his father were shot by drug traffickers while hunting in El Dorado National Forest;

* on June 16, 2009, law enforcement officers with the Lassen County Sheriff's Department were wounded by gunfire from drug traffickers during the investigation of a marijuana plantation on Bureau of Land Management property; and

* Mexican drug traffickers use the revenue generated from marijuana production on Federal lands to support criminal activities, including human trafficking and illicit weapons smuggling, and to foster political unrest in Mexico.

The bill points out that law enforcement efforts to date have only brought about "short-lived successes in combating marijuana production on Federal lands" but offers no suggestions for solutions that would actually hurt the cartels in the long-term.  The law enforcement officials at LEAP believe that legalization is the only long-term solution, and if the bill is enacted into law they will be working to make sure that the White House drug czar's office seriously weighs ending prohibition as part of the strategy called for by the legislation.

The full text of the bill can be found at: <http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.RES.1540:>

Speaking on the floor today, Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) said the bill "serves to perpetuate this failed policy of prohibition which has led to rise of criminal production of marijuana on federal lands."


Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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Gov. Gary Johnson Says Legalize Marijuana to Hurt Cartels

Check out this great op-ed from LEAP advisory board member Gary Johnson, a former governor of New Mexico.

Legalize Marijuana to Stop the Drug Cartels

by Governor Gary Johnson

           There were 72 bodies found on a ranch ninety miles south of the Texas border -- obvious victims of a drug cartel massacre.  Bullets have been hitting public buildings in El Paso and the Washington Post is reporting that at least $20 billion a year in cash is being smuggled across the U. S. border each year.  What is it going to take to convince the Federal Government  that current drug policies are not working? The fact is that the current drug laws are contributing to an all-out war on our southern border -- all in the name of a modern-day prohibition that is no more logical or realistic than the one we abandoned 75 years ago?

           Mexican drug cartels make at least 60 percent of their revenue from selling marijuana in the United States, according to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. The FBI estimates that the cartels now control distribution in more than 230 American cities, from the Southwest to New England.

           How are they able to do this? Because America’s policy for almost 70 years has been to keep marijuana—arguably no more harmful than alcohol and used by 15 million Americans every month—confined to the illicit market, meaning we’ve given criminals a virtual monopoly on something that U.S. researcher Jon Gettman estimates is a $36 billion a year industry, greater than corn and wheat combined. We have implemented laws that are not enforceable, which has thereby created a thriving black market. By denying reality and not regulating and taxing marijuana, we are fueling not only this massive illicit economy, but a war that we are clearly losing.

           In 2006, Mexican President Felipe Calderon announced a new military offensive against his country’s drug cartels. Since then, more than 28,000 people have been killed in prohibition-fueled violence, and the cartels are more powerful than ever, financed primarily by marijuana sales. Realizing that his hard-line approach has not worked, earlier this month Calderon said the time has come for Mexico to have an open debate about regulating drugs as a way to combat the cartels. Ignoring this problem, Mr. Calderon said, “is an unacceptable option.”

           Calderon’s predecessor, Vicente Fox, went even further, writing on his blog that “we should consider legalizing the production, sale and distribution of drugs” as a way to “weaken and break the economic system that allows cartels to earn huge profits … Radical prohibition strategies have never worked.”

           Fox is not alone. His predecessor, as well as former presidents of Brazil and Colombia, has also spoken out for the need to end prohibition.

         

           And they’re right. Crime was rampant during alcohol prohibition as well. Back then it was lead by gangsters like Al Capone. Now it’s lead by cartels.

           The violence in Mexico is out of control and is destroying the country. Journalists fear reporting the daily shootouts because of threats from the cartels. Some schools are even teaching their students to duck and cover in order to avoid the crossfire. Politicians are being targeted for assassination.

           The havoc has spread into the United States. In March, hit men executed three people linked to the U.S. Consulate in Juarez, an act that President Obama condemned. And the same cartels that are selling marijuana in the United States are destroying treasured environmental resources by growing marijuana illegally in protected park lands. By regulating marijuana   such illegal grows would cease to exist. The problem has been out of hand for quite some time, and a new approach is desperately needed.

            

           Sadly, U.S. officials refuse to even acknowledge that such a debate is taking place. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske has said repeatedly that the Obama administration is not open to a debate on ending marijuana prohibition. Even worse, we’ve continued to fund Mexico’s horribly failed drug war (to the tune of $1.4 billion through the Merida Initiative), while refusing to be honest with our neighbors who are urgently seeking a new direction.

           This November, Californians will decide whether to legalize marijuana for adults 21 and older. U.S. officials need to welcome the debate on marijuana regulation. It’s probably the only practical way to weaken the drug cartels—something both the U.S. and Mexico would benefit from immeasurably. We need a new solution to stop this violence.

Some specific acts of violence provided by Reuters:

* Aug 18, 2010 - The body of the mayor of Santiago, a colonial tourist town near Monterrey, was dumped on a rural road, two days after he was taken from his home. Calderon condemned the killing of Edelmiro Cavazos, the latest attack on public officials in an escalating drug war.

* July 18, 2010 - Gunmen burst into a birthday party in the northern city of Torreon, using automatic weapons to kill 17 party-goers and wound 18 others. Mexican authorities later said those responsible were incarcerated cartel hitmen who were let out of jail by corrupt officials. The killers allegedly borrowed weapons and vehicles from prison guards and later returned to their cells.

June 28, 2010 - Suspected cartel hitmen shot and killed a popular gubernatorial candidate in the northern state of Tamaulipas in the worst cartel attack on a politician to date. Rodolfo Torre, 46, and four aides from the opposition Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, were ambushed on their way to a campaign event for the July 4 state election.

GARY JOHNSON is the honorary chairman of the OUR America Initiative (www.ouramericainitiative.com), a 501(c)(4) advocacy committee. He is also the former Republican Governor of New (1994-2002), and has been a consistent and outspoken advocate for efficient government and lowering taxes.

Press Release: El Paso City Council Votes on Marijuana Legalization

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 9, 2010

CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media //at// leap //dot// cc

EL PASO CITY COUNCIL VOTES ON MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION

Ending Prohibition Would De-Fund Murderous Mexican Cartels

EL PASO, TX -- The El Paso City Council will consider a resolution on Tuesday that calls for the legalization of marijuana as way to strip Mexican drug cartels of the rich profits they make from the illegal market. The resolution is aimed at putting a stop to the cartel violence that has killed almost 10,000 people since the beginning of 2007.

"When I worked to defend the border in El Paso, I witnessed the failure and futility of the war on drugs firsthand," said Richard Newton, a retired Customs and Border Protection agent and a speaker for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a global network of pro-legalization cops, judges and prosecutors. "After 40 years of waging the drug war, we've only made the cartels stronger and richer than ever. It's clearly time for a new approach like legalization, which would bankrupt the cartels and put a stop to their killings."

Previously, the El Paso City Council set off a nationwide debate on the merits of legalization in early 2009 when it unanimously passed a resolution that merely called for serious consideration of ending prohibition as one possible option. Mayor John Cook vetoed that resolution and the council refrained from overriding the veto only after receiving threats from Congressman Silvestre Reyes that the city would lose federal stimulus money if it insisted on supporting a discussion of the merits of legalization.

The current resolution that explicitly calls for the legalization of marijuana can be viewed at http://www.elpasotexas.gov/muni_clerk/agenda/02-09-10/02091011A.pdf

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) is a 15,000-member organization representing police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others from around the world who want to legalize and regulate all drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info is available at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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George Will: Legalize Marijuana to Hurt Cartels

On today's episode of ABC's "This Week With George Stephanopoulos," a roundtable of some of the U.S.'s most prominent pundits took the opportunity to discuss the Obama administration's new medical marijuana policy, as well as the larger debate about legalizing and taxing marijuana outright.

Most notably, ultra-conservative columnist George Will says "we are probably in the process now of legalizing marijuana" and "80 percent of the revenue of the mexican cartels is marijuana. If you really want to go after the Mexican cartels...you'd legalize marijuana."

The discussion takes place in the last four minutes and 15 seconds of this clip.

Also participating in the legalization discussion are Laura Ingraham, Al Hunt, Cynthia Tucker and the Center for American Progress's John Podesta.