It doesn't matter if California legalizes pot, it will still be illegal. At least, that's what Attorney General Eric Holder has said. Regardless of the will of the people of the state, the federal government will continue to treat the possesson and use of pot as a crime.
Feds oppose Calif. Prop 19 to legalize marijuana
Holder wrote a letter, a letter that was apparently dated this Wednesday, to the former chiefs of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).
"We will vigorously enforce the CSA against those individuals and organizations that possess, manufacture or distribute marijuana for recreational use, even if such activities are permitted under state law," Holder wrote.
The attorney general also said that legalizing recreational marijuana in California would be a "significant impediment" to the government's joint efforts with state and local law enforcement to target drug traffickers, who often distribute marijuana alongside cocaine and other drugs.
He said the ballot measure's passage would "significantly undermine" efforts to keep California communities safe.
I haven't personally checked the rulings, but the article says that the Supreme Court has specifically said that federal drug laws trump state drug laws. If Prop 19 passes and CA legalizes pot, I can easily imagine some court case in the future that's going to overturn Prop 19.
Anything to further the fear of pot, I guess. It just seems so illogical to me for alcohol and tobacco to be legal, but not for pot to be. And I say this having never even once smoked any nor been around anyone else while they smoked any.