Mike Levin: “to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Barrett) and to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Portman) who with others including…”

“to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Barrett) and to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Portman) who with others including myself have taken a leading advocacy position on this issue, I congratulate all of them. This is a fight worth fighting. This is a fight we cannot lose. This fight against drug use is in danger of spreading to parts of the Nation which have not fully seen this, though in a sense every sector has seen it. There has been a denial on the part of many people that the problem exists. Hopefully this bill will be another step to take away that denial and to realize that this is a national problem that requires national action. Most of the work is going to have to be done in our communities, but surely we can lead. The most recent surveys indicate the depth of the problem that the use of some hard drugs is increasing. There is much misunderstanding within our country about marijuana use. There is more and more evidence that it is harmful. This bill draws on elements of the national strategy document put together by General McCaffrey.”