Comments on: Cracking Down

By: “Senseless and Unjust” « Upturned Earth || John Schwenkler

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 20:27:16 +0000

[...] the whole thing. I sure am glad that Obamaâ€™s views on drug policy are so terrific. A video discussion of the incident is embedded [...]

By: Grumpy Old Man

Grumpy Old Man — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:29:55 +0000

The drug bugaboo has led to a permanent moral panic. This panic, in turn, has justified an expansion of prosecutorial and police power, and a “prison industrial complex.”

The same is true of “child abuse and neglect”–moral panic breeds political exploitation and leads to the creation of an industry, with a bureaucracy, professional components in universities and civil service, and an ability to blackmail the opposition.

One is forced always to genuflect to the truths that both drug abuse and child abuse can be real evils. Meanwhile, Nanny gets ever more powerful and more predatory, all For Our Own Good, of course.

By: Young Geezer

Young Geezer — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 06:24:09 +0000

Oh, ok. So it is more “unconstitutional in practice” than per se unconstitutional like, say, wars fought without a Congressional declaration.

Gotcha.

By: Daniel Larison

Daniel Larison — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 01:28:39 +0000

Of course it is exactly infringements on 4th Amendment protections that are at the heart of objections to the drug war. These protections are badly undermined in practice. Well, there's that and the attacks on property rights that are carried out in the name of enforcement. The drug war has vested law enforcement agencies with tremendous, largely unchecked power to seize the property of anyone even remotely connected to drugs, and the arrest and imprisonment of people for possession is an example of the state curtailing liberty without much justification. As Balko has said, "The drug war has wrought the zero tolerance mindset, asset forfeiture laws, mandatory minimum sentences, and countless exceptions to criminal defense and civil liberties protections."

By: Young Geezer

Young Geezer — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 00:20:49 +0000

I’m not exactly sure how the “War on Drugs” violates the Constitution (unless 4th Amendment search-and-siezure protections are somehow violated by this). I mean, as long as everything (guns, drugs, money) is moving in interstate commerce or across national borders, Congress has the constitutional power to legislate and federal agents have the authority to enforce for the same reason federal agents enforce immigration laws instead of, say, Texas state police.

Whether or not Congress *should* legislate is another matter, as are cases where no drugs, guns, or money are moving in interstate or international commerce (which takes Congress’ jurisdiction away). But it seems that the federal government *does* have the Constitutional power to prosecute the “War on Drugs” without those exceptions.

What am I missing?