Thursday, August 17, 2006

John Kline's Party Website Endorses Decriminalizing Drugs?

In a recent click glossy newspaper insert with spooky graphics John Kline attacks a private citizen who just happens to be a Rowley campaign volunteer for his personal belief that some unspecified drugs should be decriminalized and regulated like alcohol.

Kline called the volunteer's personal belief a "wacky, extremely liberal position".

We're shocked that Kline apparently forgot to check in with his own party on this one. He's usually very good about toeing the party line. His own party website apparently endorses a conservative think tank's "wacky, extremely liberal position" that also proposes decriminalizing drugs.

The link to the Cato institute will take you to its Handbook for the 108th Congress. It makes the following recommendation about the "war on drugs"

Congress should
● repeal the Controlled Substances Act of 1970,
● repeal the federal mandatory minimum sentences and the mandatory sentencing guidelines,
● direct the administration not to interfere with the implementation of state initiatives that allow for the medical use of marijuana,
and
● shut down the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The long federal experiment in prohibition of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and other drugs has given us crime and corruption combined with a manifest failure to stop the use of drugs or reduce their availability to children.
Source: Kato Institute (via the GOP 2nd District Website)

If one buys the argument that one unpaid volunteer's personal opinion must reflect the candidate's beliefs, then certainly a conservative funded think tank must reflect the opinion of the party and the candidates that support it.

The truth is both arguments are folly. The truth is John Kline will grasp at anything he can to sling mud at his opponent. He'll spend thousands for glossy attack ads but spend zero time talking about his record on the Iraq occupation and how he supports President Bush's positions more often than nearly any other Congressman.

If John Kline wants to see something "wacky" and "extreme" he should just look in the mirror.

2 comments:

lloydletta said...

Decriminalizing drugs, but regulating and taxing them is a good idea. The War on Drugs has been a miserable failure.

I will have less respect for Colleen Rowley if she kowtows to this nonsense from Kline’s campaign discontinues her relationship with Bailey.

It’s Colleen Rowley’s positions that are important - not the opinions of her volunteers.

The fact that Kline is attacking Colleen Rowley, suggests he is threatened by her candidacy. I find that rather pathetic - since he’s got such a huge financial advantage. Does that mean the Dump John Kline blog is having it’s effect?

DeKlined said...

I think it shows Coleen Rowley is having an effect. We don't mind being the burr in John Kline's saddle, but Coleen is doing the heavy lifting with constant campaigning, listening to people and focusing on the issues instead of Kline's Krap.

And as you may have seen, Mr. Bailey has Coleen's vote of confidence. She's wise enough to know people can support her and have opinions that differ from her own.