JD Vance on Marijuana Policy, Australia's Cocaine is Being Cut with Nitazenes, More... (7/16/24)

A new Senate bill would offer protections for past marijuana users seeking federal employment, the Bahamas is moving to legalize medical and spiritual marijuana, and more.

Marijuana Policy

Nitazenes. The powerful synthetic opioids are showing up in Australia's cocaine supply. (Creative Commons)

Senate Bill Filed to Ease Impact of Marijuana Use on Federal Career Prospects. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, filed a bill last Thursday to ease the impact of past marijuana use on federal careers, the Dismantling Outdated Obstacles and Barriers to Individual Employment, or DOOBIE, Act (S. 4711).

The bill says that past use in itself cannot be the basis for negative decisions on the "suitability" for employment or eligibility for security clearances, needed for many federal jobs. It is now before the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee.

A similar bill, HR 5040, passed the House Oversight Accountability Committee last fall, but it has not received a House floor vote. Filed by Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), the House bill goes further than the Senate bill, allowing anyone who was rejected for employment or denied a security clearance since 2007 on suitability grounds to request a review to see whether marijuana use was the sole reason for the denial. If it was, the agency would be required to reconsider that decision.

The bills are the latest efforts to ease federal restrictions on marijuana hires and come as two-thirds of the states now allow either medical or adult-use marijuana, or both. Federal workplace guidance on marijuana has changed in recent years, with the Office of Personnel Management telling agencies not to automatically disqualify someone for past marijuana use. But that is only guidance that could be reversed. Passage of the bills would make the policy law.

Trump Vice-Presidential Pick JD Vance Has a Mixed Record on Marijuana. Sen. JD Vance (R-OH), who was picked Monday to be the Republican vice-presidential candidate alongside Donald Trump, has a mixed record when it comes to marijuana policy. On the one hand, he has supported the will of the voters when it comes to legalizing marijuana; on the other hand, he has refused to vote for a bill that would aid the state-legal marijuana industry.

Ohioans voted last year to legalize marijuana, and Vance seems okay with that. A month after the vote, as the state Republican Party did everything it could to annul the will of the voters, Vance told an interviewer: "The voters of Ohio have made their decisions known and we should respect that and allow it to be an Ohio issue. Maybe Michigan has a different policy, and Tennessee wants to have a different policy. That's fine. It's a good thing our system is set up this way. I wouldn't want to federalize this issue. I think we federalize far too many issues, and we shouldn't add to it."

But his comment suggests that he would oppose an end to federal marijuana prohibition, even though that would send a strong signal to the remaining states that continue to persecute marijuana users. And it suggests that he is fine with states continuing to persecute marijuana users.

He also refused to vote for a bill that would allow state-legal marijuana businesses to do business with financial institutions, the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act, S. 2860. As a member of the Senate Banking Committee, he voted "no" on the bill last September.

Asked about his opposition to the bill, Vance claimed that "the bill was crafted in such a way that actually would have opened up access to banking resources for fentanyl traffickers and others."

He added "if the legislation is better, I'd be more likely to support it."

"You have to do this in the right way," he said. "You obviously want people to access financial services -- but if you do it the wrong way, you can actually promote illicit activity, and that's what I want to prevent."

That is Vance on marijuana policy, at least so far. But he has proven a malleable political figure, shifting over time from a more traditional Republican stance to a full MAGA. And he has come a long way from the days when he called Trump "America's Hitler," "cultural heroin," and "an idiot."

International

Australia's Cocaine Supply is Being Cut with Nitazenes. Beginning this spring, powerful synthetic opioids known as nitazenes began appearing in the country's illicit cocaine supply. In April, 20 people in outer Sydney overdosed on cocaine found to be cut with nitazenes; in May, four more people were hospitalized after taking nitazene-laced cocaine in Sydney; and earlier this month, more cocaine laced with nitazenes was found in Melbourne.

Nitazenes are a powerful group of synthetic opioids that were developed in the 1950s. They were abandoned for research because they were deemed too dangerous and currently have no accepted medical use. Different nitazenes have variations in potency, but they can be up to 500 times more potent than heroin and 10 times stronger than fentanyl.

Because the drugs are so potent, there is a very fine line between intoxication and overdose. They can be especially dangerous for people not accustomed to using opioids, such as cocaine users who don't realize what is in their powder. And they are fast-acting. When someone overdoses on heroin, it can be an hour or longer before they stop breathing; with nitazenes, it is a matter of minutes.

Drug experts are recommending that people using drugs such as cocaine, MDMA, and ketamine get them checked at drug-checking services or buy nitazene test strips and test them themselves if no drug-checking service is available nearby. They also recommend buying from a known dealer, beginning with a very small amount, and not using alone. And the opioid overdose reversal drug naloxone works with nitazenes. Naloxone is free and available at pharmacies across the country.

Bahamas to Legalize Marijuana for Medicinal and Spiritual Purposes, Decriminalize It for Everybody Else. Prime Minister Philip Davis announced on Monday that he is supporting a series of bills that will legalize marijuana for medicinal and spiritual purposes and decriminalize the possession of small amounts of the herb.

"For years, Bahamians have called for an administration to have the courage to step up and take this issue on in a decisive and responsible manner," Davis stated. "While many other countries, including nations within our region like Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, and Barbados, have taken steps toward decriminalization and legalization for medical use, Bahamians were left wondering when it would be our turn to modernize our local approach to cannabis."

The Bahamas has been discussing marijuana reform for nearly a decade, and a governmental Marijuana Commission issued a final report in August 2021 indicating widespread public support for legalization.

"It was clear that the times had changed, and it was time for our laws to change as well," Davis said. "Today, the wait is over. We are taking action on behalf of all of the people who simply want the ability to legally consume medical cannabis to help them with their medical conditions. Of course, as part of this reform process, we are also taking action to recognize the rights and freedoms of Rastafarians to use cannabis as a sacrament," Davis added. "It should not be against the law for our brothers and sisters of the Rastafarian faith to practice their religion."

The proposed Cannabis Bill (2024) would authorize the production, research, possession, and use of marijuana for medical and religious purposes, establish quality controls, reduce illegal cannabis activities, control access to protect public health, and raise awareness about the health risks associated with cannabis use. The bill would also create the Bahamas Cannabis Authority to regulate legal marijuana. And it reserves business licenses for cultivation, transport, and sales for Bahamians. For licenses related to analytical testing, manufacturing, or research, entities must be at least 30 percent Bahamian-owned.

(This article was prepared by StoptheDrugWar.org's 501(c)(4) lobbying nonprofit, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also pays the cost of maintaining this website. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)