The Marijuana Policy Project announced new legislation, introduced by Ron Paul and Barney Frank, that would get the federal government out of state medical decisions! Read about it here.
From the MPP blog:
Today, a handful of visionary and courageous Members of Congress, led by Rep. Barney Frank, introduced the “Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011,” a bill that would treat marijuana the way alcohol is treated under federal law. It would give each state complete freedom to regulate marijuana in the manner it believes is in the best interests of its citizens. If a state wants to make marijuana available to patients, it can. And if it prefers to make marijuana legal for all adults, it can do that, too.
Click here to tell your representative in Congress to put an end to the war on marjiuana users!
I’ll post the text of the bill once it’s available. For now, here’s what Reason Magazine had to say about this bill:
The marijuana legalization bill announced today by Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas), H.R. 2306, would repeal federal penalties for production, distribution, and possession of the drug, leaving the states free to address the issue as they see fit. Under the bill (which Mike Riggs anticipated yesterday), the federal government’s role would be limited to preventing importation of marijuana into states that continue to ban it. The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011 is consciously modeled after the repeal of the 18th Amendment, which allowed states to establish their own rules governing alcohol. This is the first time such a bill has been introduced.
During a conference call today, Frank suggested what he’d like to see states do with their new autonomy, expressing his view that “prosecuting responsible adults who make the decision that they wish to smoke marijuana interferes with their personal freedom.” He said he was “particularly struck by the hypocrisy of public officials who will themselves talk about smoking marijuana, wink at it, and then make it criminal for other people,” which results in “a very discriminatory pattern of enforcement.” (Ahem, Bloomberg.) Frank conceded the bill “has no chance of passing” anytime soon, but added, “I think we are making progress. I think the public is way ahead of the legislators on this….This is an educational process.”
Quick update: Facebook page for the bill here!
CNBC has a poll about the bill!
And, last but not least, Willie Nelson has a video about the bill:
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