On Drug Policy Reform, a Dozen Republican Congressmen Get an A+ (and 136 Get an F)

What do Reps. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.), Earl
Blumenauer (D-Ore.), Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), and Jared Polis
(D-Colo.) have in common? If you follow drug policy, it probably
won’t surprise you to learn that they all rate A+ grades in a

new voter guide that scores members of Congress based on their
votes for reform. A bit more surprising: So do 45 of their
colleagues in the House, including 10 additional Republicans: David
Schweikert (Ariz.), Duncan Hunter (Calif.), Paul Broun (Ga.),
Justin Amash (Mich.), Kerry Bentivolio (Mich.), Walter Jones
(N.C.), Mick Mulvaney (S.C.), Mark Sanford (S.C.), Steve Stockman
(Texas) and Tom Petri (R-Wis.).

Drug Policy Action (DPA), the political arm of the Drug Policy Alliance, based its
grades on seven votes (see list below) dealing with issues such as
hemp cultivation, medical marijuana, and banking services for
state-legal cannabusinesses. To earn an A+, a representative had to
vote in favor of reform all seven times. In addition to the 49
members who rated an A+, 116 got an A (six votes), 33 got a B+
(five votes), 14 got a B (four votes), 31 got a C (three votes), 23
got a D (two votes), and 141 got an F (one or zero votes).
 The rest did not have sufficient voting records to be
graded. The lowest-rated group consists almost entirely of
Republicans, as you might expect, but there are also five Democrats
who merited an F: Debbie Wasserman Schultz (Fla.), John Barrow
(Ga.), Mike McIntyre (N.C.), Jim Matheson (Utah), and Nick Rahall
(W.V.).

The failing congressmen included Andy Harris
(R-Md.), John Fleming (R-La.), and Hal Rogers (R-Ky.), whom DPA
describes as “drug war extremists.” Harris
distinguished himself by doggedly trying to prevent Washington,
D.C., from decriminalizing marijuana possession. DPA describes
Fleming as “a committed foe of marijuana reform efforts,” known for
“distorting and misrepresenting the facts about marijuana use in
hearings, floor speeches and briefings” (here,
for example) and for “taking to the floor to speak against
floor amendments that would support states’ rights to reform their
marijuana laws, improve access to medical marijuana and improve the
ability of states to regulate marijuana businesses.” DPA highlights
Rogers’ resistance to federal funding for “syringe service programs
that save lives and reduce health care costs by preventing the
spread of HIV and hepatitis C.” Although such subsidies are not
exactly libertarian, Rogers’ opposition to them is driven by
prohibitionist orthodoxy rather than any principled belief in
limited government, as his support for the war on drugs clearly
shows.

It is encouraging that the “drug war extremists” in DPA’s report
are far outnumbered by the 10 “champions of reform” (including
Rohrabacher, Blumenauer, Massie, and Polis) and the 23 legislators
receiving “honorable mentions” for sponsoring or cosponsoring
reform legislation as well as voting for it. Important bills that
have not gotten a vote include the Respect State
Marijuana Laws Act, which would make federal prohibition
inapplicable in states that legalize cannabis; the Marijuana
Businesses Access to Banking Act, which would protect financial
institutions that serve state-licensed marijuana businesses from
criminal prosecution, regulatory penalties, and loss of deposit
insurance; and the Smarter
Sentencing Act, which would make crack sentence reductions
retroactive, cut the mandatory minimums for various drug offenses
in half, and expand the “safety valve” for low-level, nonviolent
drug offenders. Bills that not only got a vote but were approved by
the House included Rohrabacher’s
amendment aimed at stopping the Drug Enforcement Administration
from undermining medical marijuana laws; an amendment sponsored by
Rohrabacher, Denny Heck (D-Was.), Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.), and
Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) that aimed to stop the Treasury Department
from punishing banks for doing business with state-legal marijuana
growers or sellers; and an amendment sponsored by Massie,
Polis, and Blumenauer that approved pilot hemp cultivation
projects, which
made it all the way through Congress.

Here are the seven votes that DPA counted in legislators’
favor:

1. Yes on an amendment to H.R. 1947 allowing colleges and
universities to grow and cultivate industrial hemp in states where
it is already legal without fear of federal interference
(passed the House, 225 to 200; also passed the Senate).

2. Yes on an amendment to H.R. 4660 that would have cut the
DEA’s budget by $35 million (rejected by the House, 339 to 66).

3. Yes on an amendment to H.R. 4660 that would have barred the
Justice Department and the DEA from spending money to undermine
state laws that allow hemp cultivation (passed the House, 237 to
170). 

4. Yes on an amendment to H.R. 4660 that would have barred the
Justice Department and the DEA from spending any funding to
undermine state medical marijuana laws (passed the House, 219 to
189).

5. Yes on an amendment to H.R. 4660 that would have barred the
DEA from blocking implementation of the federal law allowing hemp
cultivation research (passed the House, 246 to 162).

6. No on an amendment to H.R. 5016 that would have prevented the
Justice and Treasury departments from implementing their guidance
to financial institutions that serve state-licensed marijuana
businesses (rejected by the House, 236 to 186).

7. Yes on an amendment to H.R. 5016 that would have barred the
Treasury Department from spending any funding to penalize financial
institutions that provide services to state-legal marijuana
businesses (passed the House, 231-192). 

The DPA guide includes a handy table toward the end that shows
how your congressman voted and the grade he received.