New Rule: Anyone Demanding Drug Tests Has To Take One

Everyone occasionally suggests something that later events reveal to be ill-advised, if not mind-numbingly stupid. Most of us respond with "oops, my bad, never mind."

But it takes a special combination of idiocy, hypocrisy and anti-poor-people hatred to demand a policy after it has been proven a dead-wrong failure.

Kentucky Representative Lonnie Napier, come on down!

Floyd County Times:

A piece of legislation, which, if passed, would require drug testing for welfare recipients, was filed this week in Frankfort.

According to the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission, Rep. Lonnie Napier, R-Lancaster (36th District) re-filed a bill that would require drug and substance-abuse screening for any adults in Kentucky receiving public assistance.

BR63, prefiled for the 2012 Regular Session, would set up a random testing drug program for any adult suspected of using drugs who receives public assistance, food stamps or state medical assistance.

"I've received calls from across the U.S. from individuals, legislators and the media expressing support for this bill," said Rep. Napier. "Many Americans understand that we need to balance the needs of helping those who legitimately use public assistance to support their families with eliminating the fraud of individuals who sell their food stamps and use their welfare checks to feed a drug habit."

This is the second consecutive session that Napier has filed such a bill. In the 2011 session House Bill 208, which had more than 50 cosponsors, including House Speaker Greg Stumbo and House Republican Floor Leader Jeff Hoover, received a hearing in the House Health and Welfare Committee but never came up for a vote.

BR63 would allow the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to set up a random drug testing program for individuals suspected of using drugs while receiving public assistance.

According to the Kentucky LRC, the legislation states that substance abuse testing would only occur "when a caseworker suspects substance abuse at the initial interview or at any other occasion when the caseworker comes to suspect that the recipient is abusing controlled substances."

The bill also makes the following requirements:

• Applicants would pay for their screenings and be reimbursed if they pass.

• Both parents in two-parent families would be required to comply with screening requirements

• Those failing a drug screen would be given a 60-day grace period to enter a treatment program.

BR63 also allows any children of a parent or guardian who test positive to continue receiving public assistance, and would also allow individuals who later test negative to be eligible for receiving public assistance again.

Rep. Napier believes that his re-filed bill will once again gain bipartisan support.

"Protecting the children of our Commonwealth is not a Democrat, Republican or independent issue, but one that concerns all of Kentucky," Rep. Napier said. "Other states are passing legislation requiring drug testing for those on public assistance, and Kentucky needs to follow suit."

Everybody who thinks pre-PATRIOT-Act rules on probable cause would be honored in this program, stand on your head.

This is poor-bashing, plain and simple.

Tell ya what, Lonnie: I'll bet $100 that if you drug-tested every repug member of the Kentucky General Assembly, the percentage of positive piss tests would be higher than that of the same number of Kentucky welfare recipients.