The Pentagon Confirms The Truth

The Pentagon Confirms The Truth: Strategic Military Decisions Aren’t Made Based on Marijuana

A tired and untruthful refrain you will hear from our Mayor is that legalizing recreational cannabis in Colorado Springs will jeopardize our community’s long standing relationship with the military. This abject lie from our mayor, who never served by the way, was long ago put to bed by the Pentagon. Shortly after the passage of Amendment 64, Tom Crosson a spokesperson for the Secretary of Defense, spoke with local press. During his conversations with local press he directly stated “we will not move assets where it (recreational marijuana) is now legal”.

He continued on to say  “An example is the Netherlands. Marijuana is legal in that country. We have service members stationed in Germany and Belgium. They can go to the Netherlands on leave. They can’t smoke marijuana. In our case, it simply isn’t, ‘When in Rome, do as the Romans do.’ The UCMJ covers that.”

The military long ago established that they do not make strategic decisions on military assets based on where marijuana may or may not be legal. Right now, 38 states have legalized cannabis and more will be coming online by the end of the year. Furthermore, the Pentagon continues to expand and add strategic value to bases in San Diego, California and Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Washington — two communities where recreational marijuana is legal to purchase and consume. At Joint Base Lewis-McChord, since the legalization of cannabis in Washington, the pentagon has expanded operations in cyber warfare to better position our nation to face the rising digital threats we face from Russia and China. The Pentagon has invested nearly $150 million in expanding operations near Tacoma, Washington in the last few years.

It’s disappointing our city leadership continues to knowingly perpetuate this lie. A city with over 80,000 veterans deserves better than a mayor who disregards the truth from the Pentagon to further his own political interests. Supporting recreational cannabis in Colorado Springs will not do a single thing to diminish our relationship with the military. However, it will provide a significant investment in our veterans through dedicating millions of dollars per year to expand PTSD programs for veterans – ensuring our brothers and sisters who paid a price for their service receive the care they need.