“How many people die from marijuana overdoses every year?” Connolly asked. “I don’t know that I know. It is very rare,” Botticelli replied. “Very rare.
Now just contrast that with prescription drugs, unintentional deaths from prescription drugs, one American dies every 19 minutes,” Connolly said. “Nothing comparable to marijuana. Is that correct?” Botticelli admitted that was true. “Alcohol—hundreds of thousands of people die every year from alcohol-related deaths: automobile [accidents], liver disease, esophageal cancer, blood poisoning,” Connolly continued.
“Is that incorrect?” But Botticelli refused to answer. Guessing where the line of questioning was headed, he said the “totality of harm” associated with marijuana indicated it was a dangerous drug, even though it was not associated with deaths. “I guess I’m sticking with the president—the head of your administration—who is making a different point,” Connolly fired back.
“He is making a point that is empirically true. That isn’t a normative statement, that marijuana is good or bad, but he was contrasting it with alcohol and empirically he is correct, is he not?” Botticelli again tried to dodge the question, but Connolly interrupted him and told him to answer.
“Is it not a scientific fact that there is nothing comparable with marijuana?” Connolly asked. “And I’m not saying it is good or bad, but when we look at deaths and illnesses, alcohol, other hard drugs are certainly—even prescription drugs—are a threat to public health in a way that just isolated marijuana is not. Isn’t that a scientific fact? Or do you dispute that fact?” “I don’t dispute that fact,” Botticelli said.
Michael Botticelli (Image: ONDCP)
The head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, by contrast, refuses to admit that marijuana is safer than anything. At a a recent meeting of county sheriffs, DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart reportedly criticized President Obama for speaking candidly about the relative hazards of alcohol and marijuana. It’s not clear whether Leonhart thinks Obama’s statement was incorrect or merely inconvenient. But either way, the outrage generated by Obama’s remarks shows drug warriors believe he conceded a point crucial to their cause. I hope they are right.
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