The Crackdown on Medical Marijuana: Prohibition Revisited?
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As a candidate, President Obama joked about using marijuana, which is against federal law. Medical marijuana is legal in 16 states and the District of Columbia, and Attorney General Eric Holder sounded permissive about it when he first took office. In California, "medical" marijuana is a multi-billion-dollar industry, but last week, federal officials announced a crackdown, which came as a stunning surprise to growers, dispensaries and users. Should they have seen it coming? Also, Sheriff Lee Baca and alleged brutality at LA County jails. On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, Solyndra and the "Green Economy."
Banner image: A worker packs cannabis at the growing facility of the Tikun Olam company on March 7, 2011 near the northern city of Safed, Israel. Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty Images
Main Topic
The Crackdown on Medical Marijuana: Prohibition Revisited? ()
Early in the Obama administration, Attorney General Eric Holder said that even though marijuana use is against federal law, medical marijuana would be no problem in states where it was legalized by the voters. But there was a qualification — as long as growers and others obeyed state law. That seems to be the rationale behind what many perceive as a complete about-face: last week's announcement of a crackdown on medical marijuana in California, where voters approved it in 1996. Now, a federal crackdown on medical marijuana.
Guests:
- Lynette Shaw: Founder and Owner, Marin Alliance ffor Medical Marijuana
- Kevin Sabet: Former Senior Policy Advisor to the Drug Czar in the Obama administration.
- John Hoeffel: Reporter, Los Angeles Times
Links:
Guest Interview
Solyndra and the Future of Clean and Green Technology ()
Congressional investigators have revealed details of how $535 million in federal dollars went down the drain on guaranteed loans for high-tech solar panels. The Bush Administration put the deal in motion, but Solyndra went bankrupt on President Obama's watch, and Republicans are circulating embarrassing emails. Is the scandal really as bad as it sounds? If the US wants a "Green Economy" to create jobs here at home, are loan guarantees needed, despite the risk? Are there other ways to compete with China, which subsidizes all manufacturing costs so it can undersell the competition?
Guests:
- Darren Samuelsohn: Politico.com, @dsamuelsohn
- Mark Muro: Senior Fellow and Policy Director, Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution
- Megan McArdle: The Atlantic
Links:
- TtP 'Notebook' on US solar companies competing with China
- Samuelsohn on emails that show Energy Department brushed off Treasury's warnings on Solyndra
- Munro's recent green jobs report, 'Sizing the Green Economy'
- McArdle on Solyndra as a bad bet from the beginning
- NRDC on the government's history of promoting innovation
Underwriters
Which Way L.A.? is made possible in part by the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation, the Nathan Cummings Foundation, and the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, which supports study and research into policy issues of the Los Angeles region.
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