Don’t bet on federal marijuana legalization just yet
If passed [STATES Act], it would essentially become a concrete version of the now infamous Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment, which has protected medical marijuana states from the wrath of the Justice Department, on a temporary basis, for the past several years. But with the STATES Act, the recreational marijuana sector would also find protection under a permanent shield.
Unlike previous pot-related measures that have been submitted and left to linger and die in the halls of the nation’s political menagerie, the bill [STATES Act] does not go the distance by eliminating the cannabis plant from the DEA’s Controlled Substances Act. Under this proposal, cannabis would remain a Schedule I dangerous drug — only states would be given the freedom to engage in the legal cannabis trade without the risk of raids and prosecutions … Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who is largely responsible for which bills get picked up for discussion in the Senate, says he is nowhere near ready to see marijuana legalization take hold at the national level. [Of hemp compared to cannabis he said] “It is a different plant. It has an illicit cousin which I choose not to embrace,”
From the Article (Forbes):
Don’t bet on federal marijuana legalization just yet
Artwork Fair Use: Stefan.lefnaer
