Joe Biden Is Still Opposed To Federal Cannabis Reform
Just a short while after Chuck Schumer and his associates revealed a draft for a cannabis reform bill the White House chimed in. This particular reform bill has been long-awaited by many. The White House press secretary reiterated that President Joe Biden remains against the idea of better cannabis reform.
Still, she prominently stated the president would be “encouraged” by efforts to advance more incremental reform. For instance such as decriminalizing possession was one of Biden’s promises he made on his campaign trail.
“Nothing has changed, and there’s no new endorsements of legislation to report today,” Press Secretary Jen Psaki announced at a briefing following being asked about the new draft legalization bill.
Advocates have been waiting anxiously for this marijuana bill to be released. This draft process has taken much time where Schumer, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, and Sen. Cory Booker have been working on this for months. That finally happened on Wednesday, still, Jen Psaki’s remarks indicate that even if the measure passes through Congress, it could face some resistance from the president.
She said in acknowledgment to another question that Biden remains supportive of more incremental cannabis decriminalization. Further saying Biden would be “encouraged by actions to achieve that. But I have not spoken with him in recent days about marijuana or legislation on this.”
More Support For Federal Marijuana Reform For The U.S. Cannabis Industry
Looking past finally eliminating the long prohibition era on cannabis, this new legislation contains a litany of other provisions. These stipulations are promoting social equity and facilitating research and repairing the wrongs of marijuana criminalization. The three senators formally revealed the 163-page proposal at a press conference on Wednesday.
though they’ve also opened a public comment period to solicit feedback until September 1 to finalize the language. The words from the press secretary come as a letdown to advocates. Yet they’re a long way from surprising given that Biden has maintained opposing the adult-use legalization. Even though it’s notoriety throughout the public, and especially among Democrats.
During his presidential campaign back in 2020, Biden ran on a promise to pass modest cannabis legislation. For instance such as decriminalizing cannabis possession, expunging prior records. As well as respecting the rights of states to set their own laws. After Biden took his place in the White House, his administration has not taken action to make any of those promises happen. Rather he has instead fired his own White House employees over marijuana. Then he attempted to stretch a budget provision that has prevented Washington, D.C. from legalizing cannabis sales.
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Some were very surprised when Biden came forward to suggest that international sports rules on marijuana may need to be reevaluated. This came following the issue with a U.S. runner that was suspended after a drug test came back a positive cannabis test. But that’s a far cry from supporting comprehensive reform.
Psaki, for her part, originally declined to denounce Olympics officials’ punishment on Richardson. This came about when questioned about the issue at a prior briefing with interviewers. But she said CNN just a short while ago that the case highlights the necessity to “take another look” at the laws on cannabis.
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Back In April, Psaki spoke on matters in reference to some of the reform pledges that Biden made on his campaign. Biden made a promise to free federal prisoners with marijuana convictions but want to begin with modestly rescheduling cannabis. Which would be a bill that advocates say wouldn’t really achieve what she’s proposing.
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