HIGH PRAISE FOR WAR ON DRUGS

The U.S. drug czar visited Ottawa in a mellow mood yesterday, heaping
praise on the Tory government in stark contrast to the wrath he
directed at Liberals.

National Drug Control Policy director John Walters said Prime
Minister Stephen Harper's government understands the importance of
the war on drugs better than the Paul Martin and Jean Chretien administrations.

"The record for (Harper's) administration in terms of co-operation
has been outstanding and I came here to say thank you," said Walters.

We're A Top Supplier

The Liberals' flirtation with decriminalizing marijuana riled
Walters, but he added that Canuck pot remains a problem. He said more
Americans are addicted to marijuana than any other illegal drug and
Canada is a top supplier. He said Canada's pot trade is dominated by
Asian crime gangs.

"There is still a significant flow," said Walters. "And it's not some
latter-day hippies making a little money on the side. These are
serious criminal organizations."

During a press conference, held under the watchful eye of
plainclothed U.S. marshals, Walters asked the media to help him smoke
the myth that pot toking is okay.

"We are living with a public perception of the Cheech and Chong
movies in the U.S., where marijuana was a soft drug that you could
laugh at and it made you have the munchies," he said.

But pot will get you hooked and change your life for the worse, he said.

"We are living a lie when we pretend that marijuana is not a serious
drug of abuse."

On 'B.C. Bud?'

During a duelling press conference later in the day, Liberal Sen.
Larry Campbell wondered whether Walters was smoking "B.C. bud."
Campbell, a former Vancouver mayor, called for a radical shift in pot policies.

"Legalize it," said Campbel. "And tax the hell out of it."

Walters' visit will be followed by a high-level security meeting in
Ottawa today.

Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay, Public Safety Minister
Stockwell Day, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Homeland
Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and other top politicians are
meeting as part of the Security and Prosperity Partnership -- a
strategy drawn up by Canada, Mexico and the U.S. to improve the
continent's collective competitiveness and public safety.