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Harborside Health Center executive director Steve DeAngelo argues his marijuana clinics obey the law.
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-- noon time it took up the feds are cracking down on medical marijuana clinics and California.
And Steve DeAngelo as executive director of harbor side held center.
And does Steve this crackdown is resulting in people losing jobs and -- California losing tax money make your case there.
Well -- -- -- -- employee over a hundred people well and good well paying jobs and last year we paid over three and a half billion dollars in combined taxes state local and federal.
All of these would be eliminated if our recycle -- were to be closed down not to mention all of the payroll taxes that our employees pay every payroll.
Yes and so last Monday you got a surprise federal drug agents came to your.
Storefront or your -- front whatever you wanna call it and they had tactic noticed your door of -- -- right why is that.
Well let's not IRS forfeiture others would be a civil forfeiture proceeding at separate from the IRS action which was taken against us about a year ago.
Okay if you -- on the why the wanna do whether wanna shut you down.
They want to shut us down because the federal government does not recognize.
The that there's a medical use for campus and so even though we're licensed by the city of Oakland amber completely compliant with California State law.
The Justice Department has -- us an appropriate target.
Now this surprises because I remember when George W got office -- came Obama's.
-- the cooler guy instead his book that he had snorted cocaine and smoke a lot of pot and the Bab Obama administrations have we will not.
Be going after those -- sort of California the state law.
And then suddenly four months before the election -- in deep trouble and even the Obama guys are trying to close you down why is that.
Well you know -- I just it I about a year before the election that all of this started on there may be a connection there I think that we've created a positive example of regulated -- disputes which is very threatening to drug warriors who -- committed to the drug war.
Yet you know -- out.
A lot of this wander out there is this just an excuse for people to go to someplace and buy pot -- -- get high when they don't need it dramatically.
What portion of the entire plot the medical Canada's business do you think -- you know pot heads are kind of cut try to get that on the slide vs medical uses legit like would you say your stories.
-- know I'm not a a doctor I can't look at someone and make a a medical diagnosis of before we admit anybody to harbor side.
We checked with the medical board of California and make sure the Doctor Who -- their recommendation is in good standing with no restrictions on their license and then we contact the doctor.
To make sure that the information on the written recommendation accurately reflects.
What's in the doctor's records.
We just don't have the training to do more than that share if people feel like recommendations are being written and appropriately.
That should be taken up with the medical board of California that's why we chat with them.
Okay what's the last step what's the next thing that happens to show whether -- -- is it -- your dot.
Well on 723 Obama is coming to poster -- to downtown Oakland for a fund raiser and we expect thousands and thousands of medical cannabis patients to be industry tomorrow and we'll be watching that feeds you ended death of the harbor side held -- thank you very much there was today good -- --
