Heinrick Supports Marijuana for Medicinal Purposes.

It's been 13 months since New Mexico's Medical Marijuana law took effect. We asked Democratic Congressional Candidate Martin Heinrich his views on the program.

In this AUDIO INTERVIEW, Heinrich says he supports marijuana for medicinal purposes, but says he's adamantly opposed to legalizing drugs.

"It's incredibly important that we don’t decriminalize or legalize the recreational use of marijuana. I think that would be an enormous mistake."

Heinrich told me at an event featuring a national guest, Illinois Congressman Rahm Emanuel (a former Clinton Aide), that he believes the effectiveness of marijuana should be left up to the medical establishment, and not to politicians.

He says he's proud of the work he did as an Albuquerque City Councilor to approve one of the first laws in the country that required Sudafed to be locked behind glass or stored in counters. He said it made an enormous impact in the community.

Heinrich says there needs to be more of an effort here to cracking down on methamphetamines, heroin and cocaine. If elected to congress he says he'll try to get more funding to fight illegal drugs.

Meanwhile, the NM Department of Health will have a public meeting on Monday, September 8, 2008 at 9:00 a.m. to determine the "Licensing Requirements For Producers, Production Facilities and Distribution" Visit this webpage to read more about the program in New Mexico.

Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain told me, on his Straight Talk Express bus, during his recent trip to Albuquerque, that he supports New Mexico's right to have a medical marijuana law. In this AUDIO INTERVIEW, however, he says he also believes, as do millions of other Americans that marijuana is a gateway drug. McCain says the Bush administration has been AWOL on the War on Drugs.

The D.E.A. says it's illegal. And they're arresting users, growers and distributors. On August 5th Federal prosecutors won a conviction against a Morro Bay pot dispenser. David Lynch faces five years in prison. The Los Angeles Times reported:

Cultivating, using and selling doctor-prescribed medical marijuana are allowed in some instances under California law. But they are outlawed entirely under federal law, which supersedes those of the states.

According to the FEDS marijuana is still addictive and people using it for relief are having to seek admittance in rehab programs, but probably like this exclusive center one in Malibu. We learned there are more teens in treatment for marijuana use than for any other drug or for alcohol. Adolescent admissions to substance abuse facilities for marijuana grew from 43 percent of all adolescent admissions in 1994 to 60 percent in 1999.

Agents claim marijuana is much stronger now than it was decades ago. According to data from the Potency Monitoring Project at the University of Mississippi, the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content of commercial-grade marijuana rose from an average of 3.71 percent in 1985 to an average of 5.57 percent in 1998. The average THC content of U.S. produced sinsemilla increased from 3.2 percent in 1977 to 12.8 percent in 1997.

To read about the myths of the "drug" consider visiting this D.E.A. webpage.
Photos: MG Bralley