Consequences of Prohibition
Drug War Issues
Politics & Advocacy
Kamala Harris endorses marijuana legalization, House Democrats reveal a marijuana banking bill, Israel okays clinical studies of MDMA to treat PTSD, and more.
The House is preparing to move on regularizing financial services for marijuana-related businesses. (Creative Commons)
Kamala Harris Endorses Marijuana Legalization Saying it Brings Joy. Saying marijuana “gives a lot of people joy,” Democratic presidential contender Sen. Kamala Harris endorsed marijuana legalization Monday. She also said she had tried marijuana in college.
Congressional Democrats Circulate Text of Marijuana Banking Bill. The House Financial Services Committee has released the text of a bill allowing marijuana businesses to do business with the banking and financial sector. The bill goes further than previous bills, with provisions specifying that ancillary businesses should be allowed to bank and adding protections for marijuana-related “retirement plans or exchange-traded funds.” Another new provision clarifies that “proceeds from a transaction conducted by a cannabis-related legitimate business shall not be considered as proceeds from an unlawful activity solely because the transaction was conducted by a cannabis-related legitimate business.” A memo released by the committee says the bill “would harmonize federal and state law by prohibiting federal banking regulators from engaging in certain actions against financial institutions, such as discouraging, prohibiting, or penalizing depository institutions that serve cannabis-related legitimate businesses.”
New Mexico Marijuana Legalization Bill Wins House Vote. A bill to legalize marijuana, HB 356, passed out of the Health and Human Services Committee on a 5-2 vote along party lines, with Democrats in support. The vote came after more than three hours of testimony. To have a chance to become law, the bill will have to move quickly through a network of committees and win approval from both legislative chambers by mid-March.
Hemp
Idaho Hemp Bill Filed. The House Agricultural Affairs Committee will back legislation that would legalize the cultivation and sale of hemp throughout the state. The measure, HB 122, would change state law to conform with the 2018 federal Farm Bill that legalized hemp nationwide.
South Dakota Governor Says State Not Ready for Hemp. Republican Gov. Kristi Noem is encouraging lawmakers to “just say no” to measures that would legalize hemp this year. Noem said the state isn’t ready for hemp.
Collateral Sanctions
Mississippi Bill Would Make Those Convicted of Felony Drug Offenses Eligible for Public Assistance. A bill that would allow people convicted of felony drug offenses to be eligible for public assistance programs is on the move. Senate Bill 2791, also known as the Reentry and Employability Act, passed out of the Senate Judiciary A Committee last week, just ahead of the deadline for general bills to pass out of committee. The bill would waive the state’s participation in a federal law requiring that drug felons not be eligible for such programs. Most other states have already opted out.
International
Israeli Health Ministry Approves MDMA Clinical Trials. The Health Ministry has approved the “compassionate use” of MDMA in clinical trials of the drug’s utility in treating post-traumatic stress disorder. The decision came after extensive investigative work by the ministry, which included sending a representative to the US to work with the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS).
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Permission to Reprint: This content is licensed under a modified Creative Commons Attribution license. Content of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.
Comments
Marijuana Legalization, or Republicans: Pick One
You can have marijuana legalization, or you can have the lying, raping, stealing, white supremacist Republicans, but you can't have both. You must choose one. For me, that's an easy choice... I'll choose freedom over fascism, any day of the week!
If you think Republicans are just the same as Democrats, then don't know shit from Shinola!
In reply to Marijuana Legalization, or Republicans: Pick One by Dain Bramage (not verified)
Dain Bramage
Such an angry, hate filled poster. Such venom and total lack of understanding makes me wonder why he is allowed to post on this site.
He adds nothing to a rational disacourse. The man is truly in need of medication and possibly confinement.
In reply to Dain Bramage by Greenbrier Rick (not verified)
Come and get me, if you want me
Or else fuck off, Greenbrier Rick!
In reply to Dain Bramage by Greenbrier Rick (not verified)
Take it from an ex-Republican, Rick Wilson
Rick Wilson, on Trump's mad rant from the White House Rose Garden;
from the Daily Beast:
The terrible and consequential action today—and a GOP response that at its bravest amounts to pathetic and indifferent “resistance”—is just Donald Trump clearing away one more barrier to authoritarianism. Sure, it’s funny watching him rant, but we’re laughing our way over the cliff. [...]
I spoke to Republicans in both the House and Senate today, including several who are strong supporters of the president. Every single one thinks the executive order is an absolutely terrible idea. As policy, the emergency order is a flaming disaster. Nothing good will come of it, and they all know it.
Set aside the precedent-setting nature of just how Trump is applying this emergency declaration and you'll see why all of them recognize the power he's handing to future Democratic presidents. They know it. They're terrified of it.
And, as always, they won’t do a thing to stop it.
In reply to Take it from an ex-Republican, Rick Wilson by Dain Bramage (not verified)
Censorship and violence
Curious how hardcore rightwing Israel is leading on this.
I know support for weed somewhat cuts across usual partisan lines, but older conservative leaders seem almost universally opposed. I'd like to see some reporting on why Israel is so different.
And I'm not surprised to read that MAPS played a role in this.
The Guardian is a leading progressive newspaper in Britain, except for their continuing support for alcohol supremacism over cannabis and for the entire war on users of illegal drugs. Their reporting is better than their editorial line, and they just had a long report on the career of a British woman whose made it her life work to promote relegalization of psychedelics. But without a single word about MAPS which has been diligently and productively working on the exact same issues for over 30 years! This is an excellent newspaper, world class investigative reporting, but when it comes to the war on selected drugs, their skills desert them. They also insist on calling fake cannabis 'synthetic cannabis' when it is no such thing, despite all warnings that they are playing into the hands of the sellers of this poison who are using this safe sounding name to trade on the reputation for safety of real cannabis.
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