Federal Gov to Interfere in State’s Laws Re: Pot

[Destiny]

Jeff Sessions Begins Long Anticipated Crackdown On State-Legal Marijuana https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jeff-sessions-marijuana_us_5a4e38cee4b025f99e20582e

I am aware that Huffington is not the most unbiased news source, but it’s the one I had handy and this article is fairly middle of the road, and frankly I didn’t feel like going looking for the same article from an unbiased news source. The facts are fairly presented in this one.

Separate from legalisation being the will of the people in those states, I find it interesting that the Republicans are all omg state’s rights when its something they like, but it’s not ok when a blue state does something they don’t like. Also, the conflicting laws are going to lead to more sad stories of government overreach. I firmly believe (shockingly) that the Trump admin is on the wrong side of history here.

[GrumpyGran]

1 hour ago, Destiny said:

Jeff Sessions Begins Long Anticipated Crackdown On State-Legal Marijuana https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jeff-sessions-marijuana_us_5a4e38cee4b025f99e20582e

I am aware that Huffington is not the most unbiased news source, but it’s the one I had handy and this article is fairly middle of the road, and frankly I didn’t feel like going looking for the same article from an unbiased news source. The facts are fairly presented in this one.

Separate from legalisation being the will of the people in those states, I find it interesting that the Republicans are all omg state’s rights when its something they like, but it’s not ok when a blue state does something they don’t like. Also, the conflicting laws are going to lead to more sad stories of government overreach. I firmly believe (shockingly) that the Trump admin is on the wrong side of history here.

Yep, Republicans throw another one of their guiding principles out the window. They're all for fiscal responsibility until they're not. They're all for states' rights until they're not. Wonder what shoved that marijuana bug up Sessions' ass.

[Destiny]

2 minutes ago, GrumpyGran said:

Yep, Republicans throw another one of their guiding principles out the window. They're all for fiscal responsibility until they're not. They're all for states' rights until they're not. Wonder what shoved that marijuana bug up Sessions' ass.

He's always been super anti pot. I'm not surprised by it, though I can definitely see future problems with conflicting laws. Its going to lead to people losing everything at some point.

States rights unless the state disagrees with us. Fucking hypocrites.

[RosyDaisy]

I have 2 words for Sessions. Carly's Bill. Two more words. Fuck you!

[Penny]

There is a girl in Colorado Alexis Bortell 12 years old who takes medical Marijuana for seizures. She has been seizure free for almost 3 years. She and a couple other people are suing Sessions for medical Marijuana legalization. She moved from Texas because of her seizures. This has spurred her supporters into action. 

[Howl]

This has absolutely enraged legislators in states where pot has been legalized to varying degrees, including CA, whose legalization of recreational use went into effect 6 days ago (Jan 1). Currently, all pot sales are cash (can't use credit cards or a bank when the Feds don't approve), meaning there is plenty of room to cheat on taxes, but the taxes that are collected are a major source of revenue for some states.  In Colorado, for example, pot tourism has certainly augmented regular tourism. (Dude! Oh. My. God! Double rainbow!)

Anyway, here's some information on Colorado pot sales: Marijuana tax revenue hit $200 million in Colorado as sales pass $1 billion

Quote

Excerpt:  “This money is just the tip of the iceberg. Hopefully this will be a wake-up call for the 42 states that still choose to force marijuana sales into the criminal market and forego millions of dollars in tax revenue,” said Mason Tvert, the Marijuana Policy Project’s Denver-based communications director, in a statement. “The state received nearly $200 million in marijuana tax revenue, whereas just a decade ago it was receiving zero.”

Sales of $1 Billion.  One. Fucking. Billion!!!!!!  1! 11! ELEVENTY! 

Anyway, Jeff Sessions.  Is there nothing he won't do?

[GreyhoundFan]

1 hour ago, Howl said:

Anyway, Jeff Sessions.  Is there nothing he won't do?

He won't leave the '60s...the 1860s. Oh, and he won't act like a caring human being, because he's a little troll.

[GreyhoundFan]

From the WaPo editorial board: "Sessions’s unwise move on marijuana may backfire"

Spoiler

Attorney General Jeff Sessions is pushing the federal government back into marijuana enforcement. This is an unwise and unnecessary move that may divert resources from more serious problems — and end up backfiring on those who want to restrain pot use.

Mr. Sessions rescinded Thursday a policy that kept the federal government largely out of the way of states that have legalized marijuana. A majority of states have now legalized it in some form. Maryland just began permitting medical marijuana. California just legalized recreational marijuana, and Vermont is near to doing so.

Mr. Sessions’s move upended a tenuous deal the Obama administration made with legalization states: keep pot out of minors’ hands and help combat trafficking, and federal authorities will focus on bigger priorities. This policy allowed a handful of states room to experiment with unencumbered legalization, which would have made the consequences clearer to others.

Mr. Sessions’s decision is unlikely to result in arrests of small-time marijuana users. But it will chill the growth of the aboveboard weed economy by deterring banks and other institutions from participating. From there, U.S. attorneys across the country will decide whether to crack down, and on whom — a few big distributors, perhaps, or a few local grow shops, too. In states with complex regulations on marijuana growing, testing and selling, some operations may move back underground rather than provide documentation to state authorities that federal prosecutors might later use against them.

Mr. Sessions’s move is counterproductive even for skeptics of legalization, whose only defense against a growing tide of public opinion would be evidence that full legalization has significant negative consequences. Mr. Sessions’s move diminishes the possibility of drawing lessons — including cautionary ones — from the examples of legalization states. Similarly, Mr. Sessions has made it harder to learn how to regulate the legitimate weed economy, if that is the path the country chooses.

More concerning is the prospect that U.S. attorneys will begin diverting limited federal resources into anti-pot campaigns from far more pressing matters. As Mr. Sessions himself said this past November, the nation is experiencing “the deadliest drug crisis in American history.” That would be the opioid epidemic, which, Mr. Sessions noted, claimed some 64,000 lives in 2016. Marijuana simply does not pose the same threat, and the attorney general should have avoided any suggestion that it requires more attention right now.

Mr. Sessions’s decision will spur calls for Congress to finally change federal law. That is warranted, but lawmakers should be wary of swinging too far in the opposite direction. As a recent National Academies of Science review found, experts still know relatively little about marijuana’s health effects. It makes no sense to lock up small-time marijuana users, but it may not make sense to move quickly to national legalization. Rather, Congress should decriminalize marijuana use, then await more information.

 

[Zola]

Sessions Has No Exit Strategy For His War On Drugs

Spoiler

One of the great social and political experiments of this decade, marijuana legalization, faces its greatest existential threat: Jeff Sessions.

Twenty-nine states have exercised their rights and legalized marijuana in some form for medical or adult use, despite marijuana possession remaining a federal crime. The anti-commandeering doctrine, long recognized as part of the 10 amendment, protects states from having to use their resources to enforce federal law.

State laws that contradict federal laws come at the cost of political and policy tensions that can only be eased by federal guidance.  For the last four years, citizens, states, and businesses have relied on Obama era guidance like the Cole Memo’s objectives and goals as a way to proceed with state-legal marijuana without fear of overreaching federal intervention.

Sessions obviously believes that state-sanctioned marijuana is something he cannot live with. However, his recent move to rescind the Cole Memo and provide no national guidance on how the federal government will interact with state-legal marijuana will not roll back the tide of legal marijuana. Instead, it will hurt public health and public safety.

Unfortunately for Sessions, state and local law enforcement officials perform the vast majority of drug-related arrests. Sessions’ spectacularly ill-advised move does not empower him to co-opt these state and local resources; it simply directs his limited federal resources to go after marijuana enterprises that might be complying with previous federal guidance, state laws and regulations.

To follow through on the imagery of an actual war on drugs, the Department of Justice serves as one of the more elite squadrons on the field — smaller in number, but with some top talent and the best equipment. They can and should only be deployed sparingly for the nation’s biggest and most complicated law enforcement challenges.

The Cole Memo was a strategic retreat from a full-frontal assault on marijuana criminalization. It recognized that the Department of Justice did not have the resources to battle every marijuana case, but instead that it should focus on marijuana sales that involved children, diversion out-of-state, driving while high, or cartel involvement.

It also freed up resources so that the Department of Justice could focus on more pressing issues, like the opioid crisis. Now, General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions has turned to his squadron and told them to attack the field at random. One can be forgiven for imagining him ordering his troops to charge a hill at the Battle of Shiloh.

This move was all the more confounding because Sessions waited until immediately after California had begun legal marijuana sales. If he had acted even a few weeks earlier, there could have been time for the largest state in the nation to communicate with its United States Attorneys to figure out the best next steps.

Initial reports indicate that United States Attorney learned about the new memo from the news. The only justification for waiting until after the point of no return, and not informing the attorneys now charged with future enforcement, appears to be that Sessions wants to create chaos.

Sadly, there will be real consequences to this enforcement shift. While the state licensing and enforcement systems will remain in place, an increase in the risk of federal prosecution may deter good actors from entering the industry.

Every industry has some people interested in long-term gain, who are more risk-averse and tend to be more law-abiding. Every industry also has people who are interested in short-term profits, willing to take on risk but have fewer scruples about breaking the law. Sessions is effectively scaring off the more legitimate actors — people who would create systems that keep marijuana away from children, educate consumers on safe and responsible use, and prevent revenue from falling into the hands of cartels.

Even worse, more risk-averse ancillary businesses, such as banks, will decide to stay out altogether. This means we will see more cash on the street and less financial accountability. This is a recipe for violent robberies, ad hoc money laundering or even organized crime. It wasn’t liquor distribution that created Al Capone, it was the cash that needed laundering as a result of federal property. It may well be that this is Sessions’ plan.

He will weaken the effectiveness of a tax and regulate system and then be able to point to that same system and claim proof that legalization does not work. But such a strategy elevates ideology over outcomes. It puts his need to be right over the well-being of the citizens he has sworn to protect.

Marijuana legalization has its problems. Evidence suggests some people think it is acceptable to use marijuana and drive, and it may be leading to more deaths on the road. People are abusing home grow laws to grow large amounts of marijuana on their property for the purpose of out-of-state-diversion or other illegal sales; in some cases this has led to violence, property destruction, and environmental hazards.

These were the exact issues the Cole Memo addressed, and there are useful data coming from the regulated frameworks that can be used to inform future changes to mitigate these issues short of inconsistent and overreaching federal intervention.

Finally, legalized states have also shown substantial promise. In Colorado, we made a lot of progress and have seen some encouraging data. Youth use, by all measures, has either remained steady or declined. In fact, the most recent federal data have shown a 28 percent decrease in youth use since commercial sales began. Last year, Colorado saw over $225 million in marijuana tax revenue. Violent crime and property crime have also shown no discernible impact from the legalization of marijuana. All this while thousands of Coloradans a year are no longer arrested for marijuana crimes

Sessions has abandoned what progress has been made over the last five years in favor of reigniting a war on drugs — a war which was lost decades ago and one from which he has no exit strategy. It is hard to rationalize Sessions’ personal interest in beating the war drum against marijuana especially when so much progress has been made in the regulated markets.

This issue is not going away because Sessions wants it to. A Gallup poll from last October showed 64 percent of Americans in favor of legalizing marijuana use, with 51 percent support from Republicans. It is time for states to rise to the occasion, mobilize resources, and campaign Congress and the Trump administration for a more reasonable approach.

I saw a clip of Sessions on tv saying "Good people don't smoke marijuana." Obviously that hateful little man doesn't know any good people.

[GrumpyGran]

26 minutes ago, Zola said:

Sessions Has No Exit Strategy For His War On Drugs

  Reveal hidden contents

One of the great social and political experiments of this decade, marijuana legalization, faces its greatest existential threat: Jeff Sessions.

Twenty-nine states have exercised their rights and legalized marijuana in some form for medical or adult use, despite marijuana possession remaining a federal crime. The anti-commandeering doctrine, long recognized as part of the 10 amendment, protects states from having to use their resources to enforce federal law.

State laws that contradict federal laws come at the cost of political and policy tensions that can only be eased by federal guidance.  For the last four years, citizens, states, and businesses have relied on Obama era guidance like the Cole Memo’s objectives and goals as a way to proceed with state-legal marijuana without fear of overreaching federal intervention.

Sessions obviously believes that state-sanctioned marijuana is something he cannot live with. However, his recent move to rescind the Cole Memo and provide no national guidance on how the federal government will interact with state-legal marijuana will not roll back the tide of legal marijuana. Instead, it will hurt public health and public safety.

Unfortunately for Sessions, state and local law enforcement officials perform the vast majority of drug-related arrests. Sessions’ spectacularly ill-advised move does not empower him to co-opt these state and local resources; it simply directs his limited federal resources to go after marijuana enterprises that might be complying with previous federal guidance, state laws and regulations.

To follow through on the imagery of an actual war on drugs, the Department of Justice serves as one of the more elite squadrons on the field — smaller in number, but with some top talent and the best equipment. They can and should only be deployed sparingly for the nation’s biggest and most complicated law enforcement challenges.

The Cole Memo was a strategic retreat from a full-frontal assault on marijuana criminalization. It recognized that the Department of Justice did not have the resources to battle every marijuana case, but instead that it should focus on marijuana sales that involved children, diversion out-of-state, driving while high, or cartel involvement.

It also freed up resources so that the Department of Justice could focus on more pressing issues, like the opioid crisis. Now, General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions has turned to his squadron and told them to attack the field at random. One can be forgiven for imagining him ordering his troops to charge a hill at the Battle of Shiloh.

This move was all the more confounding because Sessions waited until immediately after California had begun legal marijuana sales. If he had acted even a few weeks earlier, there could have been time for the largest state in the nation to communicate with its United States Attorneys to figure out the best next steps.

Initial reports indicate that United States Attorney learned about the new memo from the news. The only justification for waiting until after the point of no return, and not informing the attorneys now charged with future enforcement, appears to be that Sessions wants to create chaos.

Sadly, there will be real consequences to this enforcement shift. While the state licensing and enforcement systems will remain in place, an increase in the risk of federal prosecution may deter good actors from entering the industry.

Every industry has some people interested in long-term gain, who are more risk-averse and tend to be more law-abiding. Every industry also has people who are interested in short-term profits, willing to take on risk but have fewer scruples about breaking the law. Sessions is effectively scaring off the more legitimate actors — people who would create systems that keep marijuana away from children, educate consumers on safe and responsible use, and prevent revenue from falling into the hands of cartels.

Even worse, more risk-averse ancillary businesses, such as banks, will decide to stay out altogether. This means we will see more cash on the street and less financial accountability. This is a recipe for violent robberies, ad hoc money laundering or even organized crime. It wasn’t liquor distribution that created Al Capone, it was the cash that needed laundering as a result of federal property. It may well be that this is Sessions’ plan.

He will weaken the effectiveness of a tax and regulate system and then be able to point to that same system and claim proof that legalization does not work. But such a strategy elevates ideology over outcomes. It puts his need to be right over the well-being of the citizens he has sworn to protect.

Marijuana legalization has its problems. Evidence suggests some people think it is acceptable to use marijuana and drive, and it may be leading to more deaths on the road. People are abusing home grow laws to grow large amounts of marijuana on their property for the purpose of out-of-state-diversion or other illegal sales; in some cases this has led to violence, property destruction, and environmental hazards.

These were the exact issues the Cole Memo addressed, and there are useful data coming from the regulated frameworks that can be used to inform future changes to mitigate these issues short of inconsistent and overreaching federal intervention.

Finally, legalized states have also shown substantial promise. In Colorado, we made a lot of progress and have seen some encouraging data. Youth use, by all measures, has either remained steady or declined. In fact, the most recent federal data have shown a 28 percent decrease in youth use since commercial sales began. Last year, Colorado saw over $225 million in marijuana tax revenue. Violent crime and property crime have also shown no discernible impact from the legalization of marijuana. All this while thousands of Coloradans a year are no longer arrested for marijuana crimes

Sessions has abandoned what progress has been made over the last five years in favor of reigniting a war on drugs — a war which was lost decades ago and one from which he has no exit strategy. It is hard to rationalize Sessions’ personal interest in beating the war drum against marijuana especially when so much progress has been made in the regulated markets.

This issue is not going away because Sessions wants it to. A Gallup poll from last October showed 64 percent of Americans in favor of legalizing marijuana use, with 51 percent support from Republicans. It is time for states to rise to the occasion, mobilize resources, and campaign Congress and the Trump administration for a more reasonable approach.

I saw a clip of Sessions on tv saying "Good people don't smoke marijuana." Obviously that hateful little man doesn't know any good people.

He is the type of person who will be begging for it as he dies from a particularly painful form of cancer.

[candygirl200413]

He also just wants POC to stay on the lowest ladder therefore he needs his continued war on drugs.

[GrumpyGran]

1 hour ago, candygirl200413 said:

He also just wants POC to stay on the lowest ladder therefore he needs his continued war on drugs.

He's got to find some way to feel superior and for him, that's hard.

[AmazonGrace]

 

[Destiny]

3 minutes ago, AmazonGrace said:

 

[RosyDaisy]

There are children in Birmingham being treated for seizure disorders with CDB oil. Sessions wants to deprive children from his own home state this treatment. Sessions is a monster! Unconscionable!

[Penny]

Sessions is an old man set in his ways and will never change his mind about marijuana. He is too old to ever think it could benefit anyone medically or to even explore the possibility it might have benefits. 

For anyone who thinks it should be illegal, they need to spend time with someone with uncontrolled seizures. Talk to them and find out how their lives are improved, what meds did not work. Talk to the doctors who prescribe the medicine. Talk to them about their ideas on how it has helped their patients. Go talk to the growers. Find out all you can about Marijuana before you label it as bad. 

 

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

4 minutes ago, Penny said:

Find out all you can about Marijuana before you label it as bad. 

I really wish someone neutral could do proper scientific studies on the effects of cannabis. Double blind clinical trials. More than just anecdata. It would be nice to have some hard facts backed up by clinical data. I know statistics and studies can still be controversial, but it would be a start. 

[GreyhoundFan]

1 hour ago, WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo? said:

I really wish someone neutral could do proper scientific studies on the effects of cannabis. Double blind clinical trials. More than just anecdata. It would be nice to have some hard facts backed up by clinical data. I know statistics and studies can still be controversial, but it would be a start. 

That would go against every principle of this administration, if this administration could be said to have principles. Remember, to many Repugs, science is ebil, so there is no value in scientific studies. Any studies would have to be done without government funding, at least until we can get some Dems in charge.

[onekidanddone]

Once again it feels as if we are screaming into a jet engine.

ETA: The tweet she re-tweeted

 

[fraurosena]

On 08/01/2018 at 11:21 PM, AmazonGrace said:

 

Well, he's had to pay the price for his bigotry. I just can't stand it that bigotry and racism don't have consequences for everyone in office. 

 

[WiseGirl]

1. Come on trolls are feeling haven't you watched Frozen?

2. Thank goodness my 80 something year old parents are liberal. It truly is something to hear them yell at this administration whenever they are on television. 

3. Sessions is an ass.

4. Repugs are showing their true hypocritical, soul selling, racist colors every day and that makes me sad.

5. Although I have no proof, I just feel that legal pot could help so many states financially.

6. Sessions is an ass....repeat 10x.

[Howl]

34 minutes ago, WiseGirl said:

5. Although I have no proof, I just feel that legal pot could help so many states financially.

As I noted upthread, the tax revenue windfall is immense:  "Marijuana tax revenue hit $200 million in Colorado as sales pass $1 billion." 

In the scheme of things, this might not seem like much in a state's budget, but Colorado is not a densely populated state relative to its size.   So yes, the income stream from pot tax would be immensely helpful to many states, and economically depressed and primarily agricultural states could start growing hemp. Hemp fans are always quick to note that hemp is a hearty crop, unlike thirsty cotton which also requires lots of pesticide.  

California projects an eventual $770,000 to $1 billion annual tax revenue from legal pot sales. 

 

[WiseGirl]

Thanks @Howl sorry I missed that. I would like my state to legalize pot for the $$$ as it is in dire financial straits.

And once more for good measure,  Sessions is an ass.

[GrumpyGran]

Ha, just watched that video. I could barely hear it but I always like to watch the other people around the ass while the ass shoves his foot down his throat. I think he gets to the part where he begins talking about what he believes about POC and marijuana and there is a couple sitting there who look at each other like "WTH?" The guy sitting to the right of ass looks like he'd pay good money to be anywhere but there.

The train has left the station on this. Everyday I see a story on the news about how CDB helps children with seizures. You can't put that genie back in the bottle. If Lil' Possum thinks he can go up against parents when it comes to the health of their children, he's dumber than I thought. These are people who are middle to upper class, they have the money to contribute to political campaigns and they vote. The real battle will be to get past people like this fool so CDB can be available to everyone who needs it.

As for recreational, the repubs are going to run out of feet to shoot if they're not careful. It's bringing in money and Repub governors know that. This plus the now wildly popular off-shore drilling are widening the rift in the party. Glad this fool got his due and someone will slap the possum back in line.

[Howl]

Texas has finally legalized CDB but the growers/processors must jump though a ridiculous number of hoops and it is incredibly expensive to get a license to begin the entire process.  A family in my city whose daughter has seizure disorder has been pushing hard for this.  I really don't understand why they don't just make a trip to Colorado, buy some CDB oil and bring it back for their daughter in an unmarked bottle. 

On 1/13/2018 at 8:56 AM, GrumpyGran said:

the repubs are going to run out of feet to shoot if they're not careful.

The circular firing squad might take care of that problem.