COP on the Hill: Stories from the week of August 23, 2013

COP on the Hill

Stories from the week of August 23, 2013

Mundane and hopefully important:  19 presentations in the House this week with Congress in recess.  Seems like I have been doing this since Adam & Eve left the garden.

The March:

The 50^th Anniversary of the Martin Luther King “I have a dream” speech was celebrated with a march and rally at the Lincoln Memorial on Saturday.  Although I arrived 45 minutes before the start, I could go no closer than ½ mile from the podium.  No worries, I was there to politic.  Five hours on my feet later (I am getting too old for this..seriously), 200 plus fotos taken, about 80 chats, 3 interviews by minor TV and bloggers,  my duty to God and Country fulfilled, I went home.  The foto below captures the essence of the day.

Campaigning with Misty not only attracts more attention, the saddle is a place for me to sit..Sadly the Park Police do not civilian horses on  the Mall L

This week’s stats:

• 1335 Presentations to Congressional staffers..19  this week
• 61 interviews and reports in minor media = blogs, cable TV, weekly papers, etc..03 this week
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COP stats since inception: August 2009

• 34 Appearances on major TV networks..this week(Fox, ABC, CBS, NBC, Univision)
• 22 published interviews in major (daily)newspapers or magazine… this week
• 72 published letters to the editor (value per MAPINC in free publicity: $70,000)
•  2 editorials in daily papers mentioning Howard’s efforts & in support of COP position
• 31 Radio Interviews.. this week
• 37 brief chats with Members of Congress..this week
• 40 chats with other elected officials, state reps, senators, VIPs, etc.  this week
• 15 major conferences attended..  this week (CPAC, LULAC, NRA, CBC, ASA, DPA, Dem & Repub. Presidential conventions.  etc)
• Permanent invitation to Grover Norquist’s Wednesday brunch attended by 150 conservative leaders.   Named the “Grand Central Station of the Conservative Movement.”

• Consider being a member of COP at $30.00 or more per year.   All contributions are tax-deductible.  30 dollars buys all the copy paper COP uses in one year.   Law Enforcement’s voice in opposition to current policy is vital on the Hill to achieve a repeal of federal prohibition.  COP provides that voice.   If you agree that Modern Prohibition/War on Drugs is the most destructive, dysfunctional and immoral policy since slavery & Jim Crow and want to be a part of the solution…  Go to:

• www.CitizensOpposingProhibition.org and click on Donate/Join – by credit card or send a check to:
• Citizens Opposing Prohibition
• POB 543
• Buckeystown, MD 21717

Marijuana Industry to Congress: Legalize Pot, Provide New Tax Revenue

As Congress wrestles with big budget cuts, marijuana businesses want to help out the federal government with a novel message: Tax us, please. Pot advocates say legalizing the drug and taxing it like alcohol would add billions to the federal treasury, McClatchy Newspapers report. Some analysts dismiss a pot tax bonanza as far-fetched. Still, the idea is stirring serious debate on Capitol Hill.

The Senate Finance Committee included marijuana taxes in an options paper on possible new revenue sources. In the House, one proposal would legalize pot, tax it, and regulate it nationally. The less ambitious Small Business Tax Equity Act would allow the Internal Revenue Service to give breaks on federal income taxes for marijuana businesses. Noting that pot remains a banned substance, Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron said, “If they don’t like the fact that they can’t take certain tax deductions because they’re in an illegal business, then they should go in some other business where they can take tax deductions.” McClatchy