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Title: 'Don't Let My Daughter Die, Governor!' Drug Warrior Chris Christie Promises to Escalate the War on Weed
Source:
Reason
URL Source: http://reason.com/blog/2015/08/01/c ... ristie-medical-marijuana-child
Published: Aug 1, 2015
Author: Anthony L. Fisher
Post Date: 2015-08-01 12:45:34 by Deckard
Keywords: None
Views: 2032
Comments: 21
If elected president, Christie says he'd stomp out legal weed. As governor, he's already done just that.
Earlier this week, Reason's Jacob Sullum wrote about New Jersey Governor and GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie's pledge to enforce the federal ban on recreational marijuana, ignoring the will of the states that've legalized cannabis sales.
This isn't the first time Christie has disregarded state law in his crusade against legal pot. As governor, he has made it all but impossible for sick Garden State residents to obtain marijuana, even though it was legalized for medical use before he took office.
I covered that story for Reason TV back in September 2013. Click above to watch the video. Here's the original writeup for that story.
On August 14, 2013, Brian Wilson of Scotch Plains, N.J. confronted Gov. Chris Christie over his delay in signing a law that would make it possible for Wilson's two-year-old daughter to receive the medical marijuana she was prescribed under state law. The testy exchange was quickly picked up by numerous media outlets.
Vivian Wilson suffers from Dravet's Syndrome, a devastating and potentially fatal form of epilepsy that she will never outgrow. It's already led to one hour-long seizure where she stopped breathing and had to be resuscitated.
Although medical marijuana has been legal in New Jersey for three-and-a-half years, Christie's Department of Health has made it nearly impossible for patients to obtain medical marijuana in the Garden State. The myriad regulations include a requirement that three doctors sign off on the prescription, a ban on edible forms, and a limit on dispensaries from growing more than three strains of marijuana.
These regulations have made it impossible for patients to receive the kind of cannabis that could help Vivian, which is a high-CBD, low-THC form that has none of the psychoactive effects of marijuana. That is, it can't get you high.
High-CBD marijuana has proven wildly successful in alleviating seizures, but because low-THC marijuana is less popular, it makes poor business sense for the one functioning dispensary in New Jersey to produce a strain that very few patients want to purchase.
This past June, the New Jersey state legislature passed a reform-minded medical marijuana bill which reduced the number of doctors required to sign off on a prescription to one, repealed the ban on edible forms of medicinal marijuana, and increased the number of strains dispensaries can grow.
By August, the bill had been sitting on the governor's desk for two months. When Brian Wilson heard Christie was making a campaign stop at a Scotch Plains diner, he decided to ask the governor directly, "What's the hold up?"
Christie curtly replied that while the issue is simple to Wilson, it is not simple to him, and he will make his decision based on what he thinks is right for all the people of New Jersey. As Christie turned to walk away, Wilson shouted, "Please don't let my daughter die, Governor!"
After video of the dust-up in the diner went viral, Gov. Christie agreed to a sign a compromised form of the bill, allowing for edibles for minors only. This still adversely affects Vivian, because limiting edibles to minors artificially decreases demand, making it less likely that a dispensary would make the investment in opening a kitchen and enduring all the red tape involved to produce edible forms of marijuana for an extremely limited consumer base.
And despite the fact that medical marijuana is legal in 20 states and the District of Columbia, the federal government still lists marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, making it a felony to bring it across state lines, even for medicinal purposes.
The Wilsons are considering moving to Colorado, where Vivian would have easy access to the medicine that could very well save her life. But because of federal laws, they would be forced to stay in the state indefinitely to legally maintain their daughter's supply, unable even to visit their home state for a holiday.
Despite such a predicament, Vivian's mother, Meghan, insists, "This is life and death. Our lives are devoted to keeping her alive. If this doesn't pan out in New Jersey, we will move to Colorado."
Chris Christie has made himself into a national figure by projecting a plain-speaking and defiantly independent persona. But in his opposition to his own state's law permitting medical marijuana, is the former federal prosecutor simply pandering to the national Republican base in preparation for a 2016 run for president?
"I meant what I said when I said, 'don't let my daughter die,'" insists Brian Wilson. "Politics should not be determining whether or not children live."
Produced by Anthony L. Fisher. About 4 minutes.
MUSIC: "Bed" by Jahzzar (http://betterwithmusic.com). Chris Christie video courtesy of Lefty Grimes / SativaCross.com.
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I don't see who Christie is pandering to with this. Maybe the Drug Warrior faction, or police and prosecutors and attorneys general in the GOP? Christie was a highly regarded prosecutor, a real law and order type.
I don't really see the vote payoff for Christie unless he is banking on support from prison industries, prison guards and other interested crime-industrial complex players.
#2. To: Deckard (#0)
Maybe they need to have a "WAR on FAT"
Incarcerate people that are obese. After all it is unhealthy, and likely to cost taxpayers in extra medical bills.
Christie would be the first to go!
Si vis pacem, para bellum
#3. To: Deckard (#0)
And despite the fact that medical marijuana is legal in 20 states and the District of Columbia, the federal government still lists marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, making it a felony to bring it across state lines, even for medicinal purposes.
Marijuana is legal in zero states, and zero districts.
The federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970 classified marijuana as a Schedule I substance. That declares that it has no recognized medical use or value. Marijuana possession, cultivation, or use is a federal crime.
Some states have removed any possiblity of State prosecution, but they cannot make it legal. If the Feds decide to prosecute, State laws and regulations would not stand in the way.
If one in a pot “legal” state is caught on Federal property, there is no State jurisdiction.
#4. To: nolu chan (#3) (Edited)
The federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970 classified marijuana as a Schedule I substance. That declares that it has no recognized medical use or value.
Which on it's face is an absurdity beyond belief.
No surprise to see you taking the misterwhite position of nullifying the 10th Amendment.
You statist types seem to share the same tyrannical mindset.
The fact remains that Christie is a bloated, megalomaniac POS who has no concern for anyone but himself and would deny sick patients the right to use cannabis for treatment.
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
In a Cop Culture, the Bill of Rights Doesn’t Amount to Much
Americans who have no experience with, or knowledge of, tyranny believe that only terrorists will experience the unchecked power of the state. They will believe this until it happens to them, or their children, or their friends.
Paul Craig Roberts#5. To: nolu chan (#3)
"Marijuana is legal in zero states, and zero districts"
A voice of sanity!
#6. To: misterwhite (#5)
#7. To: Deckard (#4)
"No surprise to see you taking the misterwhite position of nullifying the 10th Amendment."
The 10th is as strong as ever. It protects powers NOT delegated to the federal government.
Prohibiting recreational drugs is a power the feds DO have, according to the U.S. Supreme Court.
#8. To: buckeroo (#6)
!
#9. To: misterwhite (#8)
¡¿
#10. To: Stoner (#2)
Incarcerate people that are obese. After all it is unhealthy, and likely to cost taxpayers in extra medical bills.Christie would be the first to go!
I thought he got his stomach stapled.
I expected him to get slimmer but he still looks pretty fat to me.
#11. To: misterwhite (#7)
Prohibiting recreational drugs is a power the feds DO have, according to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The same Supreme Court that legalized homo marriaige and abortion?
Yeh - that's a real bastion of morality.
The fact is - fed.gov does not have any right to mandate what FREE Americans choose to put in their bodies.
But then again - you cheer every gooberment intrusion and tyrannical edict that passes for law.
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
In a Cop Culture, the Bill of Rights Doesn’t Amount to Much
Americans who have no experience with, or knowledge of, tyranny believe that only terrorists will experience the unchecked power of the state. They will believe this until it happens to them, or their children, or their friends.
Paul Craig Roberts#12. To: TooConservative (#10)
I thought he got his stomach stapled. ...
Wow! I'd not heard that.
They must need bigger staples.
#13. To: Chuck_Wagon (#12)
He had lap-band procedure, not stapling, in February 2013.
DailyBeast: Chris Christie’s Weight Loss: The Lap-Band Procedure Explained
#14. To: TooConservative (#13)
He had lap-band procedure...
Oh, so he's the Rubberband Man then...
#15. To: Deckard (#0)
New Jersey Governor and GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie's pledge to enforce the federal ban on recreational marijuana, ignoring the will of the states that've legalized cannabis sales.
Blow it out your fat ass. The republican anti-weed agenda is nearing an end. You wanna enforce a federal law?... try our immigration laws.
I'm the infidel... Allah warned you about. كافر المسلح
#16. To: Chuck_Wagon (#14) (Edited)
Oh, so he's the Rubberband Man then...
Not exactly. He has a titanium band, strapped around his stomach.
This way, no staples, no cutting away part of the stomach. The whole stomach is still there in its little girdle but it is squeezed down so Crispy Creme feels full after only a small meal.
#17. To: Deckard (#11)
"The fact is - fed.gov does not have any right to mandate what FREE Americans choose to put in their bodies."
Correct. But they do have the power to regulate the manufacture, distribution and possession of drugs.
#18. To: TooConservative (#16)
... so Crispy Creme feels full ...
I'm a diabetic (type 2) so I haven't eaten a donut in years.
But what I most miss are pretzels - ANY kind of pretzel.
But I can't eat em. Not even those supposedly healthy 'oat
bran' pretzels. C'est horrible! It is horrible! (French)
Sticks, rods, mini, soft - No pretzels at all. Drat it all!
#19. To: Deckard (#4)
Which on it's face is an absurdity beyond belief.
You may feel it is absurd. Nevertheless, as a matter of fact, it is the law. Until there is a change in the law, or it is struck down, people believing the line that pot possession and use us lawful put themselves at risk of federal prosecution. I corrected disinformation. I did not state agreement with the policy.
#20. To: TooConservative (#1)
I don't really see the vote payoff for Christie unless he is banking on support from prison industries, prison guards and other interested crime-industrial complex players.
You answered your question.
#21. To: A Pole (#20)
Maybe so. It just seemed that public opinion has turned solidly against the Drug War, especially on this Charlottes Web variety of non-recreational cannabis oil for treating severe epilepsy in children.
Of course, Christie was considered a so-so appointment by Bush Junior at the time but went on to secure a lot of convictions. So maybe you flack the resume you have. Who knows, maybe the tough-prosecutor resume will help Christie if there is a major domestic terrorism attack or some studies against the recreational marijuana come out over the next 6-9 months.
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