By John Baucum
Given all the talk of our great state “turning blue” lately, you’d think Republican politicians would do a better job of keeping their promises and passing small government reforms that would benefit all Texans. Unfortunately, we’ve just witnessed another example of so-called conservatives choosing fiscal irresponsibility and big government over common sense marijuana reform that would save over $700 million per budget cycle and allow our hardworking law enforcement officers to focus on pressing criminal matters instead of arresting 70,000 Texans each year on simple possession charges.
As the Political Director of Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition (RAMP), Chairman Emeritus of the Texas Young Republican Federation (TYRF), and a previous city-council-appointed member of the Houston Public Safety Advisory Committee, I was encouraged to see the House approve HB 63 by a supermajority (103-42) this week. Even though this bill was watered down compared to the original version, which was in line with the Republican Party of Texas’ platform, it remained a step in the right direction.
Yet less than a day after the House passage of HB 63, which included support from many of our state’s most conservative Republicans, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick suddenly declared the bill dead on arrival in the Senate without even so much as a hearing. Our local chapter of Young Republicans responded in kind, politely pointing to statewide Texas YR advocacy on this issue and our willingness to meet for a discussion. So far, our outreach has gone unacknowledged.
This is a disappointment on a number of levels, and as a Harris County Precinct Chair who has visited with thousands of voters through block walking, phone calls, and other campaign activity in support of Texas Republicans, Gov. Abbott and Lt. Governor Patrick included, I know from experience that dropping the ball like this will both dampen conservative activism and give Democrats another advantage as they seek to shift Texas politically.
But don’t just take my word for it. According to a poll from June of last year conducted by the University of Texas and the Texas Tribune, 69% of voters in our state support reform that would limit punishment for the possession of marijuana of one ounce or less to a fine of $250 without jail time. Given these numbers, not to mention the evidence we have from other states that such policies work and have been working since the 1970s, it’s insulting that the Lt. Governor can’t even be bothered to let the legislative process work itself out by calling for a fair hearing and a vote on this bill. Please click here to contact the Lt. Governor and ask him to reconsider his position.
After all, Republicans across the nation have made huge strides as leaders on criminal justice reform on both the state and federal levels, positioning us well politically for doing the right thing: an easy win-win. Yet a small but stubborn minority here in Texas won’t follow President Trump’s lead and pass a common sense update to our marijuana laws, which haven’t been reformed in nearly half a century.
There are still 26 days left in our current legislative session, and I can’t stress enough how critical it is that Lt. Governor Patrick and Criminal Justice Committee Chairman Sen. John Whitmire reverse this mistake, follow their counterparts in the House, and pass a bill that proves Republicans are committed to their small government rhetoric and are able to work in a bipartisan fashion to help average Texans, taxpayers, and law enforcement officers alike.
A meeting between the Lt. Governor and activists both within the YRs and RAMP remains on the table, and we hope to discuss why passing this bill is such a simple yet profound way to make Texas an even greater state. RAMP founder Ann Lee, who has been a dedicated conservative activist for most of her nearly 90 years on this planet, puts it well when she says there’s nothing conservative about marijuana prohibition, a substance proven to be safer than alcohol, and as Republicans, it’s our duty to change bad law. Every time we fail to do so, we cede more ground to Democrats; a mistake we can no longer afford to make.
You do great work John, Always supported your efforts. I completely agree, I have been so disappointed with Dan in so many ways this is the latest let down. I hope you can work something out this is needed legislation.
Dan Patrick is a moron. Can’t wait to see him gone. Thank you for your hard work.
I am a die-hard Republican can’t even believe the crap that I’m seeing today out of these Democrats but Dan Patrick if you don’t change your mind on medical marijuana in the state of Texas I will vote Democrat for your seat next time even though it will make me sick at my stomach to do it I will do it because you’re completely wrong on medical marijuana or even marijuana in particular I have smoked it since I was 16 and I’m 66 years old everything that you have said on here and everything that you hear about it is a lie. One beer is a lot worse than any joint you ever seen I can’t believe someone as smart as you doesn’t say that there is nothing wrong with cannabis whatsoever I would rather see my own kid smoke cannabis then drink beer and anybody that would rather see their kids drink beer then smoke cannabis is an idiot and I’m saying that to you also but if you do not change your position you’re looking at a republican that will not check the box on the top I will go down and when I get to your part I will either vote for a different Republican or I will vote Democrat never thought I’d say that but that’s what’s going to happen
….I don’t think I can vote Democrat, but will be voting Libertarian for sure….or Dan will have a LOT of under votes!
Excellent job, John!
Apparently, smoking marijuana for 50 years causes one to forget to use punctuation.
John, what kind os signal does it send to political operatives to follow Rep. Moody hijacking of due process in the making and passing laws.
File a bill, get board based support from the constituents, have a hearing based on the contents of the bill, get voted out of committee with high hopes it will have it day in the legislative process.
Then while in calenders committee, not just amend a paragraph or pharse but competely rewrite the whole bill, without any oversight.
This is a disregard to the whole Declaration of Independence and the Constitution and the rule of law.
Maybe they should just teach this in political science classes, as a method to get what you want, by any means.
Where is the outrage?!
Sad
Such petulant behavior by Patrick makes me wonder if his ancestors wore pointed hat bedsheets and hung blacks from the railroad bridges.
I remind everyone of the words of Benito Juarez who denounced the condescending air of Maximilan of Hapsburg in the 1860s struggle against the French trying to enslave the country of Mexico:
“It is given to men, sometimes, to attack the rights of others, to seize their goods, to threaten the life of those who defend their nationality, and to make that the highest virtues seem crimes, and to give their own vices the luster of true virtue. But there is a thing that cannot be reached either by falsification nor perfidy, and that is the tremendous verdict of history. She will judge us.”
I was wanting to be a republican until I seen how Dan Patrick behaved over these latest bills. He’s real arrogant. And I don’t want him as governor one day. I want us all to get jobs and he is blocking growth.
I will be voting Democrat for the first time in my life next election cycle…and I despise Democrats but not as much as I despise Dan Patrick. He disgusts me….sorry I voted for him. I will stand out with a sign at the primaries and say, “Anyone but Dan Patrick!” He’s the one with mental health issues, right? Well, they are showing. He’s a moron and I’m just about done with Republicans because most are RINOs and Weirdos! Such as Dan Patrick. Vote Him Out!
I
I’m an unreconstructed Goldwater Republican who believes in small government where possible, big government when big government is necessary to solve big problems and keeping the government out of people’s lives whenever and wherever possible.
I was an officer in the UT Young Republicans back in the late 1960s, when it still was a felony to be a Republican in Texas. In the last few decades my party, the party I helped to build, has become the party of people who want to impose their social and religious norms on me. I resent it and Sen. Goldwater would have resented it.
What Lt. Gov. Patrick is doing with killing marijuana reform is playing to the group in the party that wants to impose its beliefs on me and everyone else. I don’t smoke pot. I’m allergic to it. But I lived in the Netherlands long enough to see that pot use won’t cause a breakdown in society. Reducing the penalties for marijuana possession won’t cause an end to the republic or a moral breakdown in society. Reducing the penalty for possession of a personal use amount of marijuana or even de-criminalizing it is in line with my libertarian principles.
All I want to know is when is his term up? Get him out of there. He does not understand what the people want and obviously working the system to his benefit so he can make some form of History while he’s lieutenant governor. I want to see him gone.
Typical confusion of Republican principles with Libertarian ideals. There is plenty of room for crossover and disagreement but it is not un-Republican to have laws which govern behavior.
Mr. Pratt: Almost all laws govern behavior. You can’t practice medicine unless you have a license. You can’t kill your wife because dinner wasn’t good. You can’t have sex with your daughter, no matter what her age or whether she consents. You have to live up to your contracts or end up paying damages for the breach of contract. If you drive a car, it has to have safety features like brake lights and shatterproof windshields. In all of those cases, the government limits and regulates behavior.
The question is what behavior should the government regulate. What behavior should be encouraged and what behavior should be punished?
And, what criteria should be used in determining what behavior to forbid or sanction? Some things are malum per se, that is always wrong. Murder is an example. There is no legitimate argument that the state shouldn’t forbid murder.
But how about sleeping with your neighbor’s wife? A vast majority of Texans would agree that it is immoral but should we send people to prison for committing adultery? We used to but that law was repealed years ago. And, it’s still the law in the military because it is prejudicial to good order and discipline within the military, not because it is immoral.
We tried forbidding alcohol because it was evil and violated some peoples’ moral code. That didn’t work out very well.
Until 1973, possession of a single marijuana cigarette or even a small amount of marijuana was a felony punishable with up to 20 years in prison. That changed when a bunch of doctor’s, bankers’ and lawyer’s children started smoking at college and ended up felons. Possession of up to four ounces of marijuana became s misdemeanor. The vast majority of the members of the Texas House want to lower the punishment for small amounts of marijuana to a fine only offense. In Harris County, you no longer get arrested for possession of small amounts of weed. You go to a class and you’re never charged with a crime. What Lt. Gov. Patrick, a Republican, and Sen. Whitmire, a Democrat, have done is deprive the 31 members of the Texas Senate from voting on the bill passed by the House. Both major political parties in Texas included reducing penalties for marijuana possession in their 2016 platforms. Is it “Republican” or “Democratic” to torpedo those platform planks?
Marijuana legalization is a legitimate topic for public debate and debate in the Texas Senate. I understand it isn’t as important as which bathroom people can use but it is important and deserves discussion.
We must end all TYRANNY in TEXAS and I for one Will take the point!
I am not the Carrot Top in my field! I shall attack all who commit crimes against my people!
Impeach patrick.
I was a Goldwater supporter in 1964. I remember he had a conservative platform, maybe even a libertarian bent, but I don’t remember he ever said anything about legalizing marijuana. If he had, back then he wouldn’t have even gotten the few votes he did. If you would vote democrat over the Senate not reducing marijuana penalties, you would soon have a lot more to worry about if the state turned blue.
DonDon: go to YouTube and look at the interviews Goldwater gave late in his career and after he left the Senate.
Oh you poor guys that favor smoking pot. And don’t say that you don’t. There are many good reasons for the prohibition of marijuana that have nothing to do with morals. I think Lt. Gov. Patrick saw this bill for what it really was – a big step toward the legalization of recreational marijuana.
“In Harris County, you no longer get arrested for possession of small amounts of weed.” That’s only because the cops feel like they are wasting their time when uber-left Kim Ogg refuses to prosecute such cases.
For all you crybabies and all the pot heads, my suggestion is that you pack up and move to California, Colorado or Washington. And I think John Baucum should lead the way!
HB63 should be calendared and given a fair hearing in the Texas Senate. It was properly vetted, heard and passed with amendments (instead of its original civil penalty it was made a Class C misdemeanor). This bill neither legalizes possession of under one ounce marijuana nor decriminalizes it – speeding, running red lights and simple assault as Class C criminal offenses aren’t decriminalized acts either.
Who among those who decry HB63 support re-criminalizing alcohol use and possession as a consistent stand against all intoxicants? I hear crickets. Considering how much more damage alcohol wreaks on society (DWI, intoxication assault & manslaughter, etc) you’d think those good folks would be jumping out of their shoes to bring back Prohibition, which we know simply didn’t work and was a waste of valuable law enforcement and judicial resources – and it ruined lives by criminal branding. The same reasoning applies to marijuana prohibition.
A Class C misdemeanor for possessing less than one ounce of marijuana – which was legal in the US before 1937 – is a reasonable middle ground between stupid prohibition and full legalization.
We shouldn’t be party loyal. We need to look for the people that are for it, plane and simple. Unfortunately the republican platform is still a zero tolerance policy on the issue. AG Jeff sessions went against the Obama era policy of turning a blind eye (don’t agree with that either). And now AG William Barr only started that we need to have a uniform policy, he never stated that he was going to decriminalize or remove it from being a schedule 1. I’m a die hard Texan and when we elect people the work for the people, we will then get our marijuana reform.
I haven’t had much use for Lt. Gov. Patrick for a number of years – ever since he decided that getting re-elected was more important than actual principles.
And, honestly, if you’re stupid enough to voluntarily use marijuana (or any of it’s derivatives, analogs or relatives) then more power to you – I see it as evolution in action.
But really, with all of the serious issues we have to deal with on the local, State, and Federal levels, THIS is the hill you decide needs taking? Really?
Pot like Alcohol has destroyed countless lives. Maybe the good folks who are reading disagree but I for one totally support Dan Patrick on this. Yes I have heard all the arguments countless times I am just not in favor of creating more and more Pot Heads.
Dan Patrick abandoned his original platform that he was elected on early on (eg property tax caps at 3%.) He had/has one objective, climb the ladder at any cost. I will happily vote against him.
As more states legalize cannabis, and as Texas digs in its heels to keep it criminalized, more gangs, thugs, and other black market dealers will move to states where marijuana is still illegal. Thank you, Dan Patrick, for always looking out for the best interests of gangs and thugs. Do you have any tax incentives in mind? Maybe attract more black market dealers by providing coupons for 25% off your sentencing if you get thrown in jail for selling weed.
Why don’t you ask the people of Colorado and San Francisco how legalizing weed and relaxing other similar laws worked out. More and harder drugs, people sleeping on tbe streets… I just read one city is “tired” of chasing drug dealers so they gave them a “safe space” to sell their drugs with no law enforcement “harassment”. That will last until the1st person ODs on drugs purchased in a city funded safe space.
Mr. Whelan, you could also have mentioned the significant increase in traffic collisions caused by pot heads. If and when Texas legalizes recreational marijuana, Texans better pray that some stoner is not driving on the same roadway they are.
Well then shouldn’t we criminalize all use of alcohol and legal prescription drugs? They’re all intoxicants that are dangerous for drivers to use. If alcohol and marijuana are both dangerous when used by drivers (and they are), then why treat one differently than the other?
Grinding people up in the “Justice” system and incarcerating them for marijuana possession is simply stupid.
A very expensive jobs program for everyone involved.
The taxpayers no longer support this crap and it will change.
Keep pot Legalize out of Texas via KeepTexasRedPAC.com and CoalitionDrugFreeTexas.org
Who is paying for those groups? Big Pharma? The liquor industry? I doubt they are funded by collection plate donations on Sundays, at church.
We don’t need legal medical marijuana nor recreational marijuana added to legal alcohol; more legal substances to abuse will make our roads more dangerous. Decriminalizing marijuana possession with substance abuse treatment and drug classes is necessary to prevent and help addicts.
This libertarian voted for Dan Patrick for the first time ever as I also voted straight ticket R for the first time. I almost voted for Collier, but when he announced he didn’t want and was not going to even ask for my vote, I gave Patrick a chance to make good on his pledge to lower property tax.
That’s all over. If Collier runs again and Patrick hasn’t been primaried, I’ll give Collier a vote he didn’t even ask for. He seems to have failed on property tax and this going against the voters on pot is the final straw after his bathroom fixation.
Howie: One of the reasons police in Harris County don’t arrest people for small amounts of marijuana is that the district attorney’s office worked out a plan with the local police agencies to seize the pot but not arrest the person, then refer them to a class. The fact that the heads of those police agencies adopted the policy and ordered their officers to follow it might have more of an effect on officers not arresting people than a feeling of frustration at the district attorney.
And, some of those officers might not like the policy because spending three or four hours of an eight hour shift (and maybe getting overtime) booking and processing a case involving a small amount of marijuana while working in an air conditioned office with a coffee pot within arm’s reach is better duty than patrolling the streets in a worn out police car in the rain and the heat.
This fellow Tom is describing exactly how HPD General Order 500-5 changed law enforcement of illegals in Houston and ultimately Harris County. That order, authored by HPD Chief Sam Nuchia on June 25, 1992 basically decriminalized illegal status for illegal aliens. Here we are 27 years later funding every conceivable necessity of same. Groceries, education, health care, housing, etc.
If you get caught doing anything illegal say your name is Jose’ Jimenez, shrug and leave it at that.
Tom, that last remark was an uncalled for dirty crack at cops and beneath you. Most cops prefer working the streets rather than processing cases in an air conditioned office with a coffee pot within arm’s reach. The Houston cops I talk to think the agreement reached with Ogg was a political one and just plain wrong.
Howie, in all fairness to Tom, he prefaced that entire paragraph with “some of those officers might not like [the new policy of not arresting first time pot arrestees].” And what “some of those officers” have told me over the many years I’ve worked in criminal justice confirms that observation of Tom’s. Bottom line, arresting people (and later branding them criminals) for small amount marijuana possession is a poor use of limited law enforcement resources. I’d rather see resources used to treat it as a health / mental health issue as opposed to a criminal issue. My two cents.