UP IN SMOKE: A WCW Project Investigation

Back in February, White Coat Waste Project (WCW) revealed wasteful marijuana experiments on monkeys. The press was surprised (and dismayed) to learn how much money had been spent on these experiments — the taxpayer-funded grants received $14 million in 2021 alone! — and it quickly made the rounds on social media, prompting flurries of laugh emojis.

This experiment, however, was just the tip of the iceberg.

Just in time for tax week — and 4/20 — WCW’s new report, UP IN SMOKE, explores the wacky and wasteful world of taxpayer-funded cannabis and e-cigarette experiments on animals, and how they’re violating federal spending transparency law.

Hot-boxing mice?✅
JUUL pods for rodents? ✅
Getting mice high, then sticking them in plastic tubes? ✅

It’s not quite this…but it’s mighty close:

And wait until you see the ‘pot lobster’ experiments that NIH white coats paid for with your money!

Even the experimenters themselves admit these cruel and wasteful animal tests aren’t relevant to humans!

Even though taxpayers funded every experiment in this report, you wouldn’t know that from reading their press releases. We found that not a single experiment was in compliance with the Stevens Amendment, a longstanding transparency law requiring grant recipients to disclose any public funding for their experiments. Not one! We’ve filed a complaint with the NIH to hold these rogue labs accountable.

Up In Smoke offers recommendations for reform, including auditing the NIH’s funding of wasteful recreational drug experiments on animals, and strengthening spending transparency laws, so Americans know how their tax dollars are being spent.

NEW: Researchers broke law spending estimated $246 million in taxpayer dollars to get animals stoned, a report finds.

Rep. Grothman told @realDailyWire schools were “sitting around thinking of the most absurd use of money they could come up with. . .”https://t.co/QnVHYnptRy

— Gabe Kaminsky (@gekaminsky) April 21, 2022

Both proposals have broad public support. An April 2022 national poll of 1,000 adults found that 58% percent of Americans — 65% of Republicans, 64% of Independents, and 54% of Democrats — opposed cannabis experiments on animals. Likewise, 65% of Americans — 74% of Republicans and 68% of Democrats — support withholding taxpayer funds from transparency law violators.

Passing the Cost Openness and Spending Transparency Act, also known as the COST Act, would solve many of the problems we detail in the report. Introduced in the Senate by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) and in the House by Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC), the COST Act would enshrine the Stevens Amendment in federal law, expand its reach to cover all Executive Branch agencies, and allow taxpayer funds to be withheld from violators.

I bet some people would volunteer for this … taxpayer dollars saved

What? lobsters ‘hot boxed’ with marijuana.

Taxpayer Watchdog White Coat Waste Files Complaint With NIH Over Violations Regarding Marijuana Tests on Monkeys, Other Animals | TIMCAST https://t.co/NH4fa6r1Lc

— Sara A. Carter (@SaraCarterDC) April 20, 2022

Research from @WhiteCoatWaste indicates that the federal government is actually responsible for the vast majority of animal cruelty in the country.

Is it any surprise a government that doesn’t value human lives also abuses animals?

My latest:https://t.co/HWeRjbkWrk

— Hannah Cox (@HannahDCox) April 29, 2022