Feds Must Make Up Their Mind on Cannabis

Loretta Lynch, the woman who will likely succeed Eric Holder as attorney general, will more than likely have to take a more decisive stance on just what the federal government intends to do regarding cannabis.

This story is making headlines, mainly because the attorney generals of Nebraska and Oklahoma filed a lawsuit with the U.S. Supreme Court, attempting to get federal support in changing/removing Colorado’s legal cannabis market. Nebraska and Oklahoma are complaining that Colorado’s legal weed is crossing borders into their states and it is putting undue strain on law enforcement and the budget, since those law enforcement officials are being paid overtime to crack down on cannabis.

It is a real problem. No, I don’t mean weed finding its way into other states. I mean that the time is nearing where the feds will have to finally make a clear decision on marijuana. This murky water will not suffice, as more and more states are considering legalization. It is simply unfair to create a situation where using cannabis is perfectly legal, yet illegal at the same time.

There are many options being tossed around as a potential solution. The slam-dunk answer, from my perspective, is a rescheduling of cannabis at the federal level. It will have a trickle down effect, and would immediately remove much of the ambivalence surrounding this issue, including the Nebraska/Oklahoma complaint.

Overtime hours would not need to be paid to cops cracking down on cannabis, if cannabis was not illegal. Another idea is to let cannabis remain legal, but to make selling it illegal. That, however, invites the criminal element right back in the door. The most equitable answer at the federal level would be to simply defer to state law. If you’re in a place where cannabis is legal, then you’re fine. If you’re not, don’t be a dumbass and bring it there.

Conservative leaders are in a quagmire. They historically want cannabis to be illegal and for the federal government to enforce the Controlled Substances Act, yet to push for such action runs against the grain to their party-line message of upholding states’ rights.

Whatever happens, I hope it’s soon. I want some sort of change for the better, at the federal level, while the current administration is in power. Political affiliation aside, the Obama Administration has been the most kind to the cannabis movement of any administration, and I don’t want to miss the chance while the door is partially open.