Replies to post #220649 on Blum Holdings Inc (BLMH)

[GreenJeans]

When's the marijuana crisis coming ?

Without ONDCP, it'll be like herding cats !!

White House dismisses concerns over steep potential cuts to "Drug Czar" office

Last Updated May 6, 2017 11:22 AM EDT

The White House is pushing back against criticism over a proposed 95 percent cut to the budget of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), arguing the federal government remains committed to fighting the opioid epidemic.

In a draft version of a budget memo obtained by CBS News on Friday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) proposed cutting nearly half the staff in the "Druz Czar" office in fiscal year 2018 (FY18), as well as a number of grant programs and other agency functions.

One of ONDCP's grant programs funds the nation's largest drug prevention program, supporting 5,000 local anti-drug community efforts across the country. The program has enjoyed widespread support from members of both parties.

At the White House briefing on Friday, deputy press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters that she wasn't going to get ahead of budget conversations, but claimed that the opioid epidemic is "a top priority" for Mr. Trump.

John Czwartacki, the OMB communications director, told CBS News that the FY18 budget is still under review and not a finalized document.

"Reports that suggest budgetary numbers or policy decisions are premature and subject to change before the late May publication of the budget," he wrote in an email.

A senior administration official suggested that if the White House decided to strip ONDCP of it's agency mandate to coordinate collaboration between federal and local law enforcement and public health organizations, transitioning it into an office like the National Security Council or National Economic Council. The official said cuts would "by no means signal the commitment to winning the war on drugs is lessened."

The senior administration official pointed to dozens of drug programs across many federal agencies as evidence that the White House is committed to anti-drug efforts, even if the ONDCP loses its ability to issue grants.

But Rafael Lemaitre, a former top spokesman for the ONDCP, countered that the reason the ONDCP was created in the first place was to coordinate these programs into one comprehensive strategy for the president.

"Creating chaos at ONDCP or eliminating the agency will mean that each of the bureaucrats who run each those long list of programs and are spread out across government will have no single point of contact or direction to follow," Lemaitre said. "Efforts will be duplicated. Presidential priorities won't be followed. Ineffective programs will continue."

"Without ONDCP, it'll be like herding cats," he added.

Scores of former government officials, doctors, community based organizations, law enforcement officials and officials at drug treatment and prevention programs agree. In a letter to senior White House adviser Reed Cordish, dozens called on the White House to maintain ONDCP's funding and strong national influence.

"As we have written before, ONDCP brings essential expertise to the table on complex drug issues, expertise that would otherwise be missing or dispersed across multiple agencies," the letter states. "ONDCP holds all federal, state, and local agencies accountable for achieving specific goals to reduce drug trafficking, use, and other consequences."

Kevin Sabet, the head of Smart Approaches to Marijuana and a three-time ONDCP adviser who distributed the letter, did not mince words.

"To slash anti-drug finding during this opiate and marijuana crisis is exactly the wrong move at the wrong time," he said.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/white-house-dismisses-concerns-over-steep-potential-cuts-to-drug-czar-office/

[GreenJeans]

So after all the dispensary raids, what's next ?

Will they raid all our homes, take all our weed and make us watch Fox news ?
Better hide your tv. The brainwashing begins...

FDA staff forced to watch Fox News instead of CNN, leaked email suggests


An email has been sent to staff at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announcing that all their agency’s televisions will show Fox News, apparently by order of the Trump administration.

Journalist Paul Thacker tweeted a screengrab of the message, but an FDA spokesperson denied there had been any such order.

It reads: “Please excuse me for sending this out to your entire group via your listserv, but I was alerted by a member in your group and I wanted to let everyone know that the reason for the change from CNN to Fox.



“The reason for the change is that a decision from the current administration administrative officials has requested that all monitors, under our control, on the White Oak Campus, display Fox News.

“Sorry for the inconvenience, but I am unable to change any of the monitors to any other news source at this time."

The email was sent to workers at the Centre for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER), the branch that regulates medical products.

An FDA spokesperson denied people had been ordered to watch Fox News, telling ThinkProgress: "There was no directive or memorandum from the Administration that went out to employees about broadcast news channels displaying on monitors in common areas throughout the FDA’s White Oak campus."

However an anonymous CBER employee told BuzzFeed News that “a lot of staff were very upset about the change”.

Another FDA staff member went further, expressing fear that having a “’right wing’ news source playing in our halls…will drive away some people on the left who are already suspicious about the FDA being a shill for big pharma”.



Donald Trump has made no secret of his dislike for CNN, referring to the news organisation as “fake news” on several occasions, and to the media as "the enemy of the people".

The administration even went so far as to block the news outlet, along with BBC, LA Times and New York Times from a media briefing earlier this year.

On one occasion, the US president wrote a scathing tweet about the media: "The Fake News media is officially out of control. They will do or say anything in order to get attention - never been a time like this!"

However, his words about Fox News have been positive, and he recently congratulated the network for its "unbelievable ratings hike".

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-federal-staff-being-forced-162245314.html

pic.twitter.com/V4P3EQsPrk

— AltFDA (@alt_fda) May 6, 2017