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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMarijuana Legalization in U.S. Capital May Be Dashed by Congress
By William Selway Dec 10, 2014 11:42 AM ET
The move to legalize marijuana in the nation’s capital may be blocked by Congress.
The $1.1 trillion federal spending plan reached yesterday, which will avert a government shutdown, bars the District of Columbia from spending money to legalize or reduce penalties for possession of marijuana. The House will vote on the plan tomorrow, Republican Speaker John Boehner told reporters today.
The provision challenges a ballot measure approved by city voters last month, which allowed residents to grow marijuana and possess as much as 2 ounces (56.7 grams). The district this year reduced the penalty for possessing less than an ounce of pot to a $25 fine, instead of potential jail time.
The November election left the city of 646,000 poised to join a growing national push to roll back prohibitions on recreational marijuana that have been in place for decades. Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska have all done so.
Congress’s move to thwart it riled marijuana advocates and city officials, who have chafed at the oversight from Capitol Hill. Washington must have its budget approved by Congress, which also has the power to veto its laws.
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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-10/marijuana-legalization-in-u-s-capital-may-be-dashed-by-congress.html
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brooklynite
(94,610 posts)On Tuesday morning, some key Republicans and conservative scholars will huddle at the Heritage Foundation to explain how "scientific understanding of the real dangers of marijuana" should chasten the people who want legal weed in their states. The timing is ideal, as the moderate Third Way think tank is just out with a poll showing clear consensus in favor of medical marijuana and narrowly in favor of straight-up legalization.
Third Way’s national poll fielded by Anzalone Liszt Grove in October 2014 found the country equally divided on legalizing recreational marijuana for use by adults, with 50% supporting legalization and 47% opposed to it. There is no such split for medical marijuana, with 78% in favor of allowing individuals to use marijuana for medical purposes if a doctor recommends it (18% oppose).
The data was collected in two waves, first with a late summer focus group, next with an October poll of 856 registered voters, conducted online. That doesn't raise any flags; the 50-47 split in favor of legal recreational marijuana is in sync with the 51-47 support level Gallup found this year. When the data was broken down by subgroup, Third Way found that millennials, non-whites, and independents all strongly favored legalization. More than 30 percent of Republicans favored it. And everyone favored medical marijuana. The issue was so promising that Third Way was able to identify a "marijuana middle," open to some relaxation of the law, if it were explained to them smartly enough.
http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2014-12-08/the-marijuana-middle-is-the-new-drug-policy-majority
DisgustipatedinCA
(12,530 posts)If a DC cop sees someone smoking a joint, just walk on by. Sure, it would be better if they could open retail establishments, but at the very least, police can just ignore the marijuana scene.
truedelphi
(32,324 posts)Erric Holder's buddies on Wall Street found themselves to be: Too Big To Jail.
Us drug reformers know that Congress is very conservative, always has been always will be.
For one thing, many of the congressional critters have heavy ties to Big Pharma, so their puppet strings will not let allow them to approve of anything liberalizing the drug laws.
And now that so many elected officials have ties to For Profit Prison industry, we can realize how sold out we all are.
joeybee12
(56,177 posts)KNR
