Up in smoke
Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2018 2:51 am
1. It was very risky to invest in an industry that could go away if a new administration decided to enforce the law. Don't feel too sorry for the pioneers in legal sales.(CNN)Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday rescinded a trio of memos from the Obama administration that had adopted a policy of non-interference with marijuana-friendly state laws.
The move essentially shifts federal policy from the hands-off approach adopted under the previous administration to unleashing federal prosecutors across the country to decide individually how to prioritize resources to crack down on pot possession, distribution and cultivation of the drug in states where it is legal.
While many states have decriminalized or legalized marijuana use, the drug is still illegal under federal law, creating a conflict between federal and state law. Thursday's announcement is a major decision for an attorney general who has regularly decried marijuana use as dangerous.
2. This selective enforcement thing is troubling, right, left or center, as anyone is subject to capricious application and non-application of the law if taken to the extreme as has been done in this situation.
3. Congress should amend the law (what a concept!) and allow states to decide the issue, but require the states to keep statistics on the impact of legalization, and have the law subject to sunset or other re-authorization in 6-8 years once the data is back in on whether the benefits of controlled legalization outweigh the costs.
4. Interesting partners on this issue.
