Presidential Executive Orders

[mofeta]

Here is an article about President Obama's use of the Executive Order recently.

Pay particular attention to the part about immigration policy/enforcement. He didn't even issue an Executive Order, he just called Janet Napolitano and told her to exercise "prosecutorial discretion" to chose not to prosecute/deport illegal immigrants unless they were violent criminals.

Here is an article in the New York Times about this shift in immigration policy.

From the NYT article:

The decision would, through administrative action, help many intended beneficiaries of legislation that has been stalled in Congress for a decade.

Mr. Durbin said he believed the new policy would stop the deportation of most people who would qualify for relief under his bill, known as the Dream Act (formally the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act).

Congress would not pass the DREAM Act, so President Obama is using his Executive powers to sidestep the Legislative Branch. It looks to me like this policy shift will be broader than that that would have resulted from the passage of the DREAM Act.

This is an EXACT analog of the medical marijuana issue. He could do (and said he would) the same thing regarding people in accordance with state MMJ laws. This is EXACTLY what Tony Aroma, dagnabit, myself and others have said he should do with MMJ policy, and it is what he said he would do.

I know some people will say "If he did the same thing for MMJ he would be in big trouble with the electorate and with Congress." Do you really think immigration policy is less of a controversial issue than MMJ? I don't think so.

 

[Sgt.Stedenko]

Not trying to offend anyone. It just seemed to fit the thread.

 

[Midnight]

You must spread some reputation around before giving it to SGT. Stedenko.

 

[Sam the Caveman]

he has to do something to get the latino vote in the upcoming election


He very well could do the same thing for mmj, but as soon as the next president gets into office they could do whatever they wanted and possibly reverse the policy.

 

[paladin420]

If all of our problems were one mans fault (Bushy)... It seems to me One man could fix em (Obummer)

 

[Mr. Bongjangles]

This is an EXACT analog of the medical marijuana issue. He could do (and said he would) the same thing regarding people in accordance with state MMJ laws. This is EXACTLY what Tony Aroma, dagnabit, myself and others have said he should do with MMJ policy, and it is what he said he would do.

I know some people will say "If he did the same thing for MMJ he would be in big trouble with the electorate and with Congress." Do you really think immigration policy is less of a controversial issue than MMJ? I don't think so.

Obama said CLEARLY that he wouldn't spend political capital on the medical marijuana issue.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvUziSfMwAw

That was in freakin' 2008, yet when he gives the same exact chuckle and answer now, he's "slaping us in the face" somehow?

Please - a ton of people heard what they wanted to hear.

Further, having his subordinates lighten up on MMJ is what he did, via the Holder memos. Things only changed slightly when Oakland decided to allow insanely massive commercial grows that are arguably not protected by the mmj legislation in Cali, forcing the administration's hand.

Not saying anyone should like Obama or vote for him, but lets stick to the facts about what he said he would do on the cannabis issue and what he has actually done, even if that isn't what we all had hoped he would do.

Food for thought too - if Ron Paul doesn't somehow snag the Republican nomination, we'll be faced with 2 choices -

Obama, who has the balls to admit he thinks things should be different for cannabis, or a Republican nominee who continues the gross lie that the substance has no benefits.

 

[Tripp Inmiasov]

Don't let the handshake and the smile fool ya'...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wKyXA_nMVQ&feature=related

 

[Hash Zeppelin]

I would still rather give Obama another chance before I would vote for the anyone in the GOP. So for me it's gotta be Ron Paul, or just let Obama have it for another 4 years. Palin, Perry, Bachman, and Romney are scary stupid.

 

[Tony Aroma]

He very well could do the same thing for mmj, but as soon as the next president gets into office they could do whatever they wanted and possibly reverse the policy.

What he said.

So any executive order (like that's ever going to happen) would have to be followed up with legislation to make it harder to undo.

 

[Tony Aroma]

Do you really think immigration policy is less of a controversial issue than MMJ? I don't think so.

I think, in the mind of most politicians, marijuana is THE SINGLE MOST CONTROVERSIAL issue in the history of the world. With something like immigration, the president can justify his actions, that he's doing the right thing, blah, blah, blah. But I don't believe very many politicians believe they can justify ending the war on drugs. Remember, this has nothing to do with logic or common sense. It's really more like superstition. They probably think ending prohibition is the political equivalent of breaking a mirror.

 

[Hash Zeppelin]

^I never really thought about it that way, but that is very interesting man. Good post.

 

[PirateGodBuggy]

ZzZzZzZ Nothing is happening...

 

[Bacchus]

It is bad luck to break a mirror or step on a crack or get caught with a dead boy or live hooker in your bed..... just saying

 

[IE2KS_KUSH]

Re: Presidential Executive Orders

Hey Hash you know Palin smoked..it is and has been legal for a bit in AK and as the top LEO of the state I don't believe she made any effort to criminalize it...just saying. I don't think so many folks are as opposed to it as we would assume.

 

[Tripp Inmiasov]

Executive orders, like most questionable acts by politicians, only show the pressure being applied by special interests. The immigration actions, or inactions, we all know is to revitalize the Hispanic vote. The only counter-pressure could only be directed at the president by the media, and we should all understand how that works by now.

With alcohol and tobacco tax revenue to the federal government exceeding $100 billion a year, the incentive to change prohibition laws is not there. When you add the other government revenues from big pharma and other companies that would stand to lose business, you can see why politicians turn a deaf ear to common sense.

Politicians just love stuffing their pockets with money from lobbyists and special interests.

The only way you will get the attention of politicians, other than Ron Paul, is to BOYCOTT the tobacco and alcohol industry. This simple movement would save the health of many people and send a strong message to all involved.

It's time to fight fire with fire. In this case, you can save your money, save your health and severely financially damage the assholes who continue to damage our society with the money they take from you.

 

[mofeta]

only show the pressure being applied by special interests.

Bingo! This is the root of it. As a community, we are pathetic at applying even the most feeble of pressures on our politicians. Our inability to rouse ourselves into action makes non-users apathetic to our cause, resulting in dismal failure.

 

[Tony Aroma]

The only way you will get the attention of politicians, other than Ron Paul, is to BOYCOTT the tobacco and alcohol industry. This simple movement would save the health of many people and send a strong message to all involved.

I'd say that would be about as successful as asking people to boycott Mexican marijuana to send a message to the cartels.

 

[Tripp Inmiasov]

I'd say that would be about as successful as asking people to boycott Mexican marijuana to send a message to the cartels.

You're right, but could you imagine what we could accomplish if we organize a few million people to boycott a given company or industry for a month or two?

It would make the news headlines for months and send the politicians scrambling.

It takes leadership and planning to get anything done. Someone must lay out goals and a set of procedures and rules in order to accomplish the things that need to be done.

If we simply sit on our collective asses and wait for someone else to do things, it will never get done.

The special interests and lobbies in Washington have done their homework. They know what they want and they know how to get it. If you remember ABSCAM, "Money talks and bullshit walks". That is the bottom line.

You have to know what you want and know how to get anything in life. Very few things are handed to you on a cannabis resin encrusted silver platter.

The reason the cannabis prohibition is still in place today is because there is no game plan to remove it, no leadership and nobody willing to challenge those who want to keep the status quo.

The way forward is to recognize that money is the key to getting most everything you want. Either you accept this as fact and organize and take action, or you accept the status quo.

 

[zymos]

I somehow doubt anyone is going to convince very many tobacco addicts to boycott their nicotine for political reasons...

 

[Hash Zeppelin]

Hey Hash you know Palin smoked..it is and has been legal for a bit in AK and as the top LEO of the state I don't believe she made any effort to criminalize it...just saying. I don't think so many folks are as opposed to it as we would assume.

I still don't have confidence in her to run a country. Shit I don't have confidence in her to run a 7/11.