Trump says he is likely to support ending federal ban on marijuana

The Los Angeles Times ^ | June 8th, 2018 | By Evan Halper

[Mariner]

President Trump said he likely will support a congressional effort to end the federal ban on marijuana, a major step that would reshape the pot industry and end the threat of a Justice Department crackdown.

Trump’s remarks put him sharply at odds with Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions on the issue. The bill in question, pushed by a bipartisan coalition, would allow states to go forward with legalization unencumbered by threats of federal prosecution.

Trump made his comments to a gaggle of reporters Friday morning just before he boarded a helicopter on his way to the G-7 summit in Canada. His remarks came the day after the bipartisan group of lawmakers proposed their measure.

One of the lead sponsors is Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), who is aligned with Trump on several issues but recently has tangled with the administration over the Justice Department’s threatened crackdowns on marijuana.

“I support Sen. Gardner,” Trump said when asked about the bill. “I know exactly what he’s doing. We’re looking at it. But I probably will end up supporting that, yes.”

[gogeo]

The problem will be the unemployable users, who is going to pay for them, are we just going to let them starve?

No, you're going to get a head tax on prosperous businesses to pay for a bureaucracy of "services." Homelessness is a stop on the road.

See: King County, WA, which between public and private funding spends over ONE BILLION DOLLARS on homelessness and the accompanying pathologies.

[Mariner]

“Anyone who thinks it’s no big deal should spend some time cruising the highlights of inner city Seattle. “

I have done so, several times both before and after legalization.

I saw no difference.

BTW, Seattle is a very, very rich and productive city. And highly educated.

[Magnum44]

Those encouragements should be thoroughly integrated into the schools and popular media.

Its going to have to come from every direction to save the generations that have no positive role models. And schools and popular media certainly are not helping today.

[Enlightened1]

Good move!

[robroys woman]

Yep. Your post gets to the heart of this. It’s not a federal issue. People forget that this country was founded in a way similar to the EU. That is, the colonies were like “countries” with an overarching government to protect the border around the whole thing, and protect the rights of individual citizens within the member countries (e.g. the first and second amendments over rule any state’s constitution), and activities that cross state lines. A good example would be that Kentucky can’t invade Tennessee.

[TribalPrincess2U]

Besides that, I hope it’s available at a low cost, of course, if I ever need it as medicine. I’ve read where it helps a lot of ailments.

[Squeako]

No doubt! Voted for him for CA governor but too many people believed Arnold was going to do what he said when he stole McClintock’s lines!

[NobleFree]

while it is indeed in the national interest to foster and encourage physical fitness, and perhaps also in the national interest to discourage drug addiction and other self-destructive behavior, there's a big different between "interest" and legally enforceable action(s).

AMEN!

[Mariner]

Part of the problem is that nobody who is a public figure WANTS to be held up as a role model.

They would be attacked and torn down from every direction.

Trump II.

[Alberta's Child]

Exactly. If the law -- and by this I mean the entire body of law in a jurisdiction, not a single law -- is not rational, then the society it governs will eventually collapse.

Anyone who pushes for legalizing drugs while at the same time accepting the idea that governments and insurance companies should be compelled to treat drug addicts is so useless and intellectually incoherent that he might as well jump into a woodchipper.

[NobleFree]

Dope is stupid, but the federal government should simply butt out. It’s not in their mission statement (constitution).

Distressing how many self-proclaimed "conservatives" refuse to get this.

If life were as simple as you seem to think it is, no one would ever disagree about anything.

So where in the Constitution is the authority to police within-state marijuana matters?

[faucetman]

The “War on Weed” is LOST! All that is left to do is surrender.

[editor-surveyor]

.
Technically, the 14th amendment ended “states rights” by placing the states under all of the provisions of the first ten amendments.

It was the only way to ‘justify’ the Civil War.

[robroys woman]

To me it smells kinda like burning a pile of leaves in the fall.

Everybody kind of giggles when we occasionally smell it in the small town where I now live. Even church people. Sure, it’s illegal, but it’s a drug that is really not taken all that seriously. I’m 64 and quit using it in 1977, but if I wanted it at any time in my life it would have been easy enough to get.

Legalizing it, to me, does two things:

1. It opens the flood gates to research in medical marijuana, which could fix our health insurance problem as much as the introduction of the model T eliminated the horse poop problem in NYC.
2. Takes away the cops’ ability to lock people away via stupid marijuana related busts - real or planted by the cops.

[gogeo]

It will also increase the “feeling” by the population where they are free - free to make their own decisions - and take responsibility for their own success or failure.

I wish this were true. I predict instead, as with all things left, the decision making will be privatized and the cost of the downside will be socialized.

[NobleFree]

Some of these vises are so abhorrent that they do rise to a national concern, even though they are not delineated in the constitution (child trafficking for example).

So "abhorrence" overrides Constitutional limitations?

[robroys woman]

If life were as simple as you seem to think it is, no one would ever disagree about anything.

---

I disagree.

;)

[robroys woman]

...try some dihydrogen monoxide...

---

Dude! People have been KILLED by overexposure to that stuff!

It’s no laughing matter.

[DungeonMaster]

This is not a win.

[dfwgator]

Dihydrogen Monoxide - The Truth
http://www.dhmo.org/truth/Dihydrogen-Monoxide.html