Washington DC Legalizes Marijuana, Will Others Follow?
The debate wages on over legalization as Washington DC legalizes marijuana in recent weeks. A voter-approved initiative set the ball rolling as the District of Columbia became the most recent area in the country to legalize possession of marijuana despite threats from Congress. This new initiative allows possession of up to 2 ounces of marijuana for use at home, as well as allowing the growth of 3 mature plants. It does not allow for the buying or selling of marijuana nor smoking it in public.
According to Robert Capecchi of the Marijuana Policy Project, he and many other advocates agree that “If the president can brew and drink beer in the White House, adults should be allowed to grow and consume a less harmful substance in their houses.” This sentiment appears to be growing as Alaska became the 3rd state in the union to legalize it on the same day as Washington DC. The legalization of marijuana continues to be just another topic that Republican and Democratic leaders will continuously disagree upon for a long time to come.When Congress doesn’t like a specific cit law, they often add this language to critical pieces of legislation to undo the law. In an effort to block the initiative, Congress approved language to be added to the law that would make moving forward with the legalization illegal and thus political leaders facing severe penalties if it passed. The prosecution of these leaders would be up to the Justice Department and would be unlikely. Congress has stated that spending money to change laws (federal money that has not been appropriated for that purpose) is illegal and would prosecute under the Anti-Deficiency Act (which protects said money).Another way that Congress can dole out retribution for passing this law is by hurting DC financially. The power is in the all mighty dollar and withholding money for any kind of funding in DC would be hurtful to progress in other areas. While there will always be disagreements in politics, especially about things like this, bullying is not the way to handle it.
According to Robert Capecchi of the Marijuana Policy Project, he and many other advocates agree that “If the president can brew and drink beer in the White House, adults should be allowed to grow and consume a less harmful substance in their houses.” This sentiment appears to be growing as Alaska became the 3rd state in the union to legalize it on the same day as Washington DC. The legalization of marijuana continues to be just another topic that Republican and Democratic leaders will continuously disagree upon for a long time to come.When Congress doesn’t like a specific cit law, they often add this language to critical pieces of legislation to undo the law. In an effort to block the initiative, Congress approved language to be added to the law that would make moving forward with the legalization illegal and thus political leaders facing severe penalties if it passed. The prosecution of these leaders would be up to the Justice Department and would be unlikely. Congress has stated that spending money to change laws (federal money that has not been appropriated for that purpose) is illegal and would prosecute under the Anti-Deficiency Act (which protects said money).Another way that Congress can dole out retribution for passing this law is by hurting DC financially. The power is in the all mighty dollar and withholding money for any kind of funding in DC would be hurtful to progress in other areas. While there will always be disagreements in politics, especially about things like this, bullying is not the way to handle it.
