Bring on the blunts! Thank you… President Trump?
Remember back in January when that life-sized keebler elf Jeff Sessions tried to bulldog by announcing the federal Department of Justice would be cracking down on cannabis, even in legal states? Well sorry Jeff, but that shit don’t fly with ya boi…Trump? Believe it or not, it’s true, President Trump announced in mid April that he would back state level regulation of cannabis, which essentially means ol’ Jeff Sessions has to crawl back into the tree and admit defeat on this one. This is the first and possibly the last time I’ll ever say this, but way to go, Trump!
Colorado Republican Senator, Cory Gardner, met with President Trump in April to discuss the memo released in January by Sessions which rescinded the Obama-era legalization of cannabis. Senator Gardner caught Trump’s attention after putting into effect a blockade on the ability to nominate individuals for the Department of Justice after Sessions overturned the Cole Memo, essentially meaning Jeff couldn’t hire anyone to go after cannabis in legal states.
“Since the campaign, President Trump has consistently supported states’ rights to decide for themselves how best to approach marijuana,” Gardner said in a statement early April. “President Trump has assured me that he will support a federalism-based legislative solution to fix this states’ rights issue once and for all.”
When prompted for a statement, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued an unusually short-winded statement saying that Gardner’s statement was “accurate.”
The assurances given by President Trump to Senator Gardner to protect states’ rights to legalize cannabis were substantial enough for Senator Gardner to agree to lift the blockade. So what does this mean for the eight recreational and 29 medically legal states? Well nothing, yet. Who knows if Trump will change his mind, not follow through, or stop hating Jeff Sessions enough to agree with him after all. But isn’t that the nature of the government? No one really knows what they’re going to do until they do it, everything else is speculation.
It does mean that cannabis related business in legal states can breathe easy for now knowing the Department of Justice won’t be beating down their door in the foreseeable future. This also allows for even more growth and expansion in the industry as cannabis related stocks have raised significantly since the outcome of President Trump and Senator Gardner’s discussion. We also have Senators currently fighting for the rescheduling of cannabis from a Schedule I substance to (hopefully) a Schedule III allowing for the expansion of medical research.
Despite this day and age being rather polarizing on the political front, there is one thing Democrats, Republicans, and all others can agree on: we like to smoke weed. Let’s all continue to use cannabis as a tool to come together, united despite our differences of views and opinions. Let’s continue to strive to represent cannabis well, to break the classic stoner stigma, and to do our part to help legalize this wonderful medicine. Cannabis brings relief to so many with chronic illnesses, pain, and even those who just want to relax or manage their stress after a long day. It doesn’t matter your political opinions or your worldview, legalizing cannabis is long overdue and the fact of the matter is, if you consume cannabis, you play a part in this historical movement. Talk to your friends, family, and strangers about cannabis, don’t simply tell them how great it is to get high, or how nothing beats hitting Taco Bell after burning down a blunt. Tell them your story, how it’s helped you and the people you’ve seen it help. Let’s continue to educate the population and spread the news of all the positive effects cannabis has on our society.
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