4 March 2018
Dear Sir:You should notice in your inbox that I cc'ed you my message to the campaign office of West Virginia Republican, Patrick Morrisey, for U.S. Senate. I am alarmed that one of his top issues is to "press for tougher sentences for drug kingpins" -- AS IF THEY'RE NOT TOUGH ENOUGH ALREADY!?! As you and I well know, the "drug kingpins" RARELY receive the toughest sentences because they are able to cooperate with prosecutors to increase their conviction stats and therefore receive lighter sentences (some even suspended) while those with the least culpability and information to "cooperate" with end up with decades-long and, many, even LIFE, sentences. To his credit, Barack Obama did do the right thing by granting as many clemencies to such convicts as he did. The many thousands still languishing in the system --at great expense to the U.S. taxpayers-- have lost all hope for any justice under Donald Trump.
And now, we are with a president who approves of Philippine president Duterte's extra-judicial killings of (even suspected) drug USERS, and considering his remarks that the United States should consider imposing death sentences on drug-dealers, I fear the GOP's possible return to the Bill Bennettesque dark ages of the Reagan-Bush era. The fact that Donald Trump has not called out Jeff Sessions for his wanting to go against the will of the people in the states that have repealed marihuana prohibition is not a good sign and could cost him dearly in 2020. I do not relish the prospect of the Democrats recapturing the White House any more than you do.
The rock-solid, hard-line position against drugs, I believe, presents a tremendous liability to the GOP. It doesn't have to be that way. I recall Gary Johnson (R-NM), while he was still governor, saying that after he made national headlines by being the highest government official in office to have ever come out against drug prohibition that, in private, just about every one of his colleagues agreed with him but were terrified to agree with him publicly -- lest they be accused of being "soft on drugs."
You may find this story interesting. Years ago --November 1994 to be exact-- on the eve of my attending a drug policy reform conference for the first time, I attended the Heritage Foundation's semi-annual President's Club meeting at which Edwin Meese, III was moderating a panel of their policy experts discussing the implementation of the "Contract With America." It was a most festive occasion -- as your colleague and fellow Georgian, Newt Gingrich, had just delivered the keynote address, the excitement of him having just become Speaker-Elect of the House was overwhelming.
As you well know, Ed was "Counselor to the President for Policy" (with cabinet rank) during the first Reagan Administration and U.S. Attorney General in the second. Therefore, it's safe to say that he was the president's right-hand-man who personally orchestrated the dramatic escalation of Richard Nixon's War On Drugs. So, during the Q & A, one gentleman called out Ed on the failures of drug prohibition and how the prisons were filling up with low-level, victimless offenders. Ed was aghast and was totally unprepared for a question like that from such a group. All he could do was fumble through his answer as best he could until the next question. This was surprising since the Federal Judicial Center had issued a report entitled The Consequences of Mandatory Minimum Prison Terms: A Summary of Recent Findings earlier that year and, had Ed been on top of his game, he would have been ready. I kinda felt a little embarrassed for him.
Afterward, during the cocktail reception, I saw Ed mingling with one of my fellow President's Club members and thought I would tell him how much I had loved the address he gave a few months earlier at a banquet hosted by the National Rifle Association. No sooner had I caught up with Ed than I realized the man with whom he was speaking was the one who called him out on the drug war and was being grilled for more/better answers. The words that came out of Ed's mouth are forever etched in my memory. He essentially conceded that the drug war is a hopelessly lost cause but, because of the fact that the government has committed so many resources over so many years prosecuting it, if it was to reverse course, "What would we ever tell young people?"
Well, after mulling over that question and years of following and studying the history of drug policy, I finally reached the conclusion that the best answer is the simplest answer: TELL YOUNG PEOPLE THE TRUTH! They are not stupid. They know when they are being lied to. Government is not perfect -- IT MAKES MISTAKES. Why are so many incumbent and aspiring politicians so terrified of publicly admitting this truth, correct it, move on, and work on restoring the freedoms that were once enshrined in our Bill of Rights? We usually only hear revelations of truth and condemnations against Drug Prohibition after they have left the public sector and are not worried about political correctness.
How far has our society degenerated that is has become politically correct and acceptable to permit the absolute decimation of our constitutional liberties and alarmingly widespread use of militarized police platoons to execute routine drug-search warrants on suspects that are NOT known to be armed and dangerous? Florida's Chief Justice Gerald Kogan really saw the handwriting on the wall when he issued this opinion, LIBERTY FINALLY HAS FALLEN.
I appreciate that you are a very busy man with much on your plate but I just want you to know how much I appreciate your work and that you are a tremendous inspiration. I just signed on to your Liberty Guard project and hope to learn and share. I have prominently featured you in this blog, PINNACLE OF REPUBLICAN HYPOCRISY: DRUG PROHIBITION, that I have posted in hopes that it might help those Republicans who are still stuck in the box to find their way out of as you did. If it helps Democrats and Libertarians call out Republicans for being bold-faced hypocrites and liars, so be it!
I really do hope that my message makes it to Mr. Morrisey and that the wisdom of Mssrs. Friedman, Buckley, Will, Reese, and yourself might enable him to abandon the GOP's traditional drug war paradigm, follow your example, and reach out to you for possible assistance in his campaign. West Virginians --and Americans in general-- are ready for wholesale reform. The marihuana issue is a given. As far as the hard drugs go, harm-reduction seems to be working well in the countries that have adopted such policies. I look forward to hearing from you at your convenience.
For the cause of Liberty, I am,
William P. Perry
His response was immediate and handwritten, no less!
March 5, 2018
Mr. Perry -- Thank you for your very thoughtful e-mail which arrived in my electronic inbox today. Your conclusion that the best manner in which to educate our nation's young people about the sad state of our “war” on drugs (esp. marijuana) is to level with them. I agree completely; which is the reason for my recent article critical of the manner in which the current administration is pursuing its marijuana policy. I will continue to do my small part of the fight for freedom, as I'm sure you will, too. Best regards, Bob Barr
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