HIGH TIME FOR POT LAW, SUPPORTERS SAY

White House Official, State's Attorney General, Clash With Pro-Pot Forces

Will Colorado become the "pot capital of America"?

Is marijuana the safer alternative to alcohol?

And who paid for a press gathering Thursday in a conference room at
the Doubletree Hotel, where federal, state and local officials urged
voters to reject a pro-pot initiative on Colorado's November ballot?

The last question became the topic of a heated exchange between
Amendment 44 campaign director Mason Tvert, Scott Burns, deputy
director for state and local affairs for the White House's Office of
National Drug Control Policy, as well as Colorado Attorney General
John Suthers.

Tvert accused Suthers of violating Colorado campaign finance law,
parts of which limit government employees' expenditures while
advocating for or against a ballot initiative.

"Who paid for this press conference?" Tvert asked from the back of the
room.

"I am not spending a dime of taxpayer money right now," an angry
Suthers retorted.

Heather Janik, spokeswoman who accompanied Burns from Washington,
D.C., later said expenses were paid by the Office of National Drug
Control Policy.

Mesa County Sheriff Stan Hilkey said the spat reflected one side of a
debate trying to silence the other. Elected officials hold First
Amendment rights, too, he said.

"They don't want both sides of this story to be heard," Hilkey said.
"If we were talking about legalizing dynamite, you wouldn't have a
dispute about letting experts from ATF get up and talk about it."

Hilkey and a host of Western Slope law enforcement leaders were at the
Doubletree to hear Burns' Thursday morning address, prior to the press
conference. The topic of Burns' speech: methamphetamine abuse.

Dude, Where's My Ballot?

Amendment 44, pushed by the group Safer Alternative for Enjoyable
Recreation, is a November ballot initiative that would legalize
possession of an ounce, or less, of marijuana for anyone 21 years or
older.

Under existing state law, possession of that amount is non-arrested
petty offense - violators are issued a written summons and face up to
$100 fines. If they're under 21, they could earn a suspended driver's
license.

Thursday's gathering at the Doubletree called the pro-legalization
effort a dangerous "con," involving a drug often associated with more
serious crime. District Attorney Pete Hautzinger said it's plain "foolish."

"I'm not about to say marijuana is as bad as meth," Hautzinger said.
"But in two years, I've virtually never seen a possession of marijuana
case that doesn't involve meth."

Should the initiative pass, that sets up conflicts with other state,
not to mention federal, drug laws, according to Hautzinger.

"It would still be against the law to buy it from somebody," he said.
"You're fostering a legal piece to an illegal enterprise."

Hilkey rejected pro-pot arguments that decriminalization would "free
up law enforcement to take on things like meth."

"It's exactly the opposite," Hilkey said. "The only people who are
going to benefit from this are those who want to get stoned."

And you're not talking about your daddy's pot: Today's marijuana has
chemical THC levels of 10 percent or higher - up from around 1 percent
in the mid-1970s, according to data from Thursday's opposition rally.

Suthers argued today's youth are paying the price.

"Sixty-two percent of teens in rehab now are there because of
marijuana," Suthers said.

'A Failed Policy'

Tvert slammed Thursday's Doubletree presentation as a "gross
distortion" of Amendment 44.

"They're trying to make this a debate about children, and it's not
about children," Tvert said. "People aren't interested in the federal
government coming into their homes, where adults should be able to
make a decision about whether or not they'll use something that's less
harmful than alcohol."

Tvert, a Denver resident who claims a shoestring budget (two full-time
staff members) pushing Amendment 44, called his own press conference
Thursday morning - posing for cameras in front of a pro-marijuana
billboard now towering over eastbound traffic at the southeast corner
of F Road and Commerce Blvd.

David Cox, 24, a Palisade resident, worked the group's signature
petition drive toward getting the measure on the ballot. Cox and
others collected 800 signatures during this past summer's Pinnacle
Homes Country Jam.

Cox knows the initiative faces an uphill battle in Mesa
County.

"But if this is talked about enough, I don't think it can lose," he
said. "Discussion is our ally."

That starts with getting everyone's position right, Tvert
said.

"We're not saying that marijuana is safe or harmless," he said. "But
if you're an adult over 21, why would we ask people to use something
(alcohol) that can kill you in one sitting, versus something that's
never killed anybody?"

Tvert also rejects claims that partial legalization would make the
drug more accessible for younger users. A recent study found 87
percent of high school seniors said it's "very easy" to get the drug,
according to Tvert.

"How could it be more available?" he asked. "If kids can get
(marijuana) easier than adults, then that's the sign of a failed policy."