White House Says It Never Planned to Fund Distribution of Crack Pipes – Opinion

CrackPipeGate seems to be under White House control. This is the After It Washington Free Beacon published a report on a grant being offered by the Department of Health and Human Services that would fund, in part, the distribution of crack pipes to “underserved” communities, the Biden administration faced outrage coming from conservatives and others. Even Snopes tried to come to the White House’s rescue.

The Free Beacon reported:

Funds for local government and non-profit organizations will be available to fund drug addiction prevention. Included in the grant, which is overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services, are funds for “smoking kits/supplies.”

These “smoking kits” included, among other implements, pipes that could be used to smoke crack or other illicit substances. The White House’s press secretary stated recently that it was incorrect. “They were never part of the kit,” she said during a press conference on Wednesday. “It was inaccurate reporting, and we wanted to put out information to make that clear.”

Psaki states crack pipes are not part of his kit. We wanted to clarify that it was incorrect reporting. pic.twitter.com/1mmgc8BIv7

— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) February 9, 2022

After the publication of the report, several prominent Republicans criticized the White House. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) tweeted: “Biden is sending free meth & crack pipes to minority communities in the name of ‘racial equity.’ There is no end in sight for this lunacy.”

Biden is sending free meth & crack pipes to minority communities in the name of ‘racial equity’

There is no end in sight for this lunacy https://t.co/RLv6cAuLCt pic.twitter.com/WdlzOojkdF

— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) February 8, 2022

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) tweeted:

HHS has confirmed that crack pipe distribution was funded by the Biden administration. It’s called harm reduction. It is called insanity by the rest.

Psaki isn’t the only official in the White House to claim the false reports. Sarah Lovenheim, a spokeswoman for Health and Human Services claimed that the reports were false. Free Beacon’s report was “blatant misinformation.” They sure love that M-word, don’t they?

When asked to clarify what was in the safe smoking kits, she said they could contain alcohol swabs, lip balm, and “other materials to promote hygiene and reduce the transmission of diseases like HIV and hepatitis.”

“I would note that what we’re really talking about here is steps that we’re taking as a federal government to address the opioid epidemic,” Psaki added.

It is intended to aid applicants from underserved communities, especially those of black or LGBTQ heritage. The grant was made possible by an executive order President Biden signed shortly after his election.

“As the statement makes clear, we don’t support federal funding, directly or indirectly, for pipes,” Psaki concluded.

If we believe the White House then the entire kerfuffle about crack pipes amounts to a huge heaping of nothing on top of a sesame-seed bun. You won’t find much here.

Nevertheless, there is a problem with the White House’s story.

We can refer to the Free Beacon’s report, we can see that the author noted that “A spokesman for the agency told the Washington Free Beacon that these kits will provide pipes for users to smoke crack cocaine, crystal methamphetamine, and ‘any illicit substance.’”

The author also noted the spokesman said the objective of distributing the kits was “to reduce the risk of infection when smoking substances with glass pipes, which can lead to infections through cuts and sores,” according to the Free Beacon which also noted the HHS told the news outlet that it was part of Biden’s executive order on “advancing racial equity.”

So who’s lying here?

Was the spokesperson wrong? If so, why didn’t Psaki or Lovenheim address it? If someone from HHS made these statements, shouldn’t they be addressed?

Naturally, it is possible that Free BeaconIt was just a bad idea to make the whole thing up. But this is unlikely. If this was the case, it would be much simpler to refute.

This case is not over. We must keep asking these questions. You should push the White House to provide an answer.

But we probably already know the answer, don’t we?

The crack pipes may have been part of the grant, and they now want to reverse course following the viral sensation. After all, it is not as if this practice wasn’t already being carried out at the state and city level. 2020 New Haven Register reported that the city’s police officers would be tasked with passing out “Harm Reduction Kits” similar to what is outlined in the grant’s documentation. According to the author:

Officials announced Thursday that they will offer the kit to New Haven Police Lockup dischargees. It includes information about the care options available in the city and Brillo pads which can be used as filters to smoke crack cocaine.

Similar programs have also been considered in other cities. This trend may have originated in Toronto Canada.

There is a possibility that crack pipe distribution was not the purpose of this grant. The dishonesty displayed by this administration since they took office makes it possible to question their claims on the matter. This is especially because an HHS spokesperson has already stated that this would be the case. This matter needs more clarification. Otherwise, there does not seem to be a reason to believe the White House’s denials.