MONEY TALKS IN DRUG BILL TUSSLE

Medical Marijuana Issue Is High-Stakes Lobby Battle; 'You Got To Spend The
Money'; Measure Passed House; Senate Vote Due Shortly

With the Senate poised to vote on medical marijuana legislation as early as
Wednesday, an aggressive lobbying battle is being waged in Annapolis
between well-financed supporters of the proposal and dogged opponents who
include the White House.

The debate makes Maryland the latest battleground in what have been a
series of costly struggles across the nation on the issue, which is often
viewed as an indicator of a state's willingness to loosen drug laws.

After making the passage of Maryland's bill a top priority this year,
medical marijuana supporters have spent at least $40,000 trying to persuade
legislators to drastically reduce pen alties for sick patients found with
the drug, said Robert Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy
Project.

"If you want to play to win, you got to spend the money," said Kampia,
whose group is leading the effort.

The Washington-based group has hired Annapolis lobbyist Gilbert J. Genn,
sent mailings to lawmakers and donated $10,000 to legislators. The
organization has also reached out to voters in districts with undecided
senators.

"They have an unbelievably strong lobbying group," said Senate President
Thomas V. Mike Miller, who reports receiving a letter from his "oldest
surviving aunt" urging passage of the legislation.

Supporters had initially hoped the legislature would approve a bill to
decriminalize the drug for patients who enroll in a state-run pilot program.

Last month, a House of Delegates committee replaced that plan with one that
keeps the possession of marijuana a crime but sets a maximum $100 fine for
people who are seriously ill.

The House approved the measure two weeks ago. Tuesday, the Senate gave an
identical bill tentative approval, with a final vote scheduled for Wednesday.

Supporters say they have at least 22 of the 24 votes needed to win Senate
approval. Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., a longtime supporter of medical
marijuana, said Tuesday he has not taken a formal position on the bill. He
added that he is inclined to support it.

But a vocal band of opponents are refusing to concede defeat. "Parents
should know there is a very effective, well-financed lobbying force trying
to destroy all drug laws in this country," said Joyce Nalepka, founder of
Drug-Free Kids: America's Challenge.

Nalepka, a Silver Spring resident, has been to the State House almost daily
decrying medical marijuana as "a hoax." She calls it the first step toward
all-out drug legalization.

Tuesday, Nalepka set up a television in Lawyers Mall and showed a videotape
that she said proved her point. The tape showed several leading medical
marijuana advocates admitting they use the drug for nonmedicinal purposes.

Nalepka, who has challenged Ehrlich to a debate on the issue, has also been
telling lawmakers that Kampia was arrested 14 years ago for possessing 96
marijuana plants in college.

Kampia, who has been to Annapolis to lobby and testify in support of the
bill, acknowledged Tuesday that he was convicted of marijuana possession in
1989 and spent three months in jail.

Nalepka's campaign was boosted Monday when White House drug czar John P.
Walters and U.S. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings announced their strong opposition
to the bill.

Miller said "hundreds" of letters supporting the proposal have been sent to
senators. He suspects advocacy groups such as the Maryland Policy Project
are orchestrating the letters. "Their funding mechanism is certainly very
effective," he said.

Some of the money for the effort is coming from wealthy individuals who
have led -- and bankrolled -- efforts to change drug laws in at least a
dozen other states.

Peter B. Lewis, a Cleveland businessman who has spent more than $1 million
on similar efforts nationwide, has donated thousands to Maryland
legislators in the past six months, according to campaign finance records.

That includes $750 to each of the two Baltimore County Democrats who are
the main sponsors of the proposal, Sen. Paula C. Hollinger and Del. Dan K.
Morhaim.

In other states, Lewis often teams with billionaire George Soros and John
Sperling, an Arizona businessman, to back ballot initiatives.

The three men spent more than $1 million on an Arizona ballot measure last
year, according to National Families Action, a Georgia-based group opposed
to medical marijuana.

But Kampia said Maryland represents a new strategy for medical marijuana
supporters, who think it is more cost-effective to focus on legislatures
instead of costly ballot initiatives.

Nalepka said she will stick to the old-fashioned -- and cheaper -- lobbying
style. "We will gather the names of people who voted to pass this and then
try to publicize it to voters."