President Trump Names New Drug Czar
The White House announced Friday that President Trump has chosen a new person to fill the position of head of the Office of National Drug Policy Control (ONDCP), often referred to as the “drug czar”.
The White House announced that President Trump will nominate Representative Tom Marino (R-PA), 65, to serve as the nation’s new drug czar. Marino was being considered for the position in May before withdrawing himself from consideration citing a “critical illness” in his family.
Marino was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2002 to serve as an attorney for Middle District in Pennsylvania, a role he held until 2005. Unfortunately Marino has been a vocal opponent of marijuana and marijuana legalization. However, his personal opinions on the matter are relatively inconsequential given that the drug czar is legally required to oppose the legalization of any substance that’s currently outlawed (as pointed out by DrugWarrant.com, the Drug Czar is “mandated to tell lies as part of their Congressional authorization”).
On May 3rd, when Marino was being considered for the position he will now take over, he issued a statement saying that: “Due to a critical illness in my family, I have, with regret and the utmost respect, informed the White House that I must withdraw my name from consideration for director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. I thank the president for the enormous honor of considering me for this lead role in the effort to address one of the most pressing issues facing our nation and my state today: the opioid epidemic. I will remain in Congress and continue to support President Trump in whatever way I can.”