60 minutes had a very interesting program about Medical Marijuana last night. It got me thinking about what the situation might look like under a Romney administration. My conclusion is, if you're a Medical Marijuana user, or seller, you should be scared.
Here's the transcript.
Here's the video.
The story is mostly about Colorado, since it seems to be one of the states that has taken the Medical Marijuana industry well into the private market. But even though it is now part of the Colorado constitution, it's still against Federal law.
This is all private enterprise, licensed and regulated and taxed by the state. It was enshrined in the Colorado constitution after voters approved an amendment allowing the sale of marijuana to people who can demonstrate that they may benefit from its avowed medicinal properties. Matt Cook, a former narcotics officer, wrote the law and served as the state's first director of enforcement.
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No state has gone to the lengths to manage medical marijuana that Colorado has. Every licensed dispensary must grow at least 70 percent of its own product indoors so harvesting and sales can be closely monitored. This crop is worth about a quarter of million dollars.
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But in spite of all the euphoria, there is a cloud hanging over the cannabis industry in Colorado, and it's not marijuana smoke. It's the federal Controlled Substances Act, which still lists marijuana as a Schedule One drug, every bit as dangerous as heroin, with no medical benefit. And the Justice Department is not happy with the wide-scale commercialization of Colorado cannabis. Sam Kamin is a law professor at the University of Denver, and one of the reigning experts on the subject.
And there's a reason for that. Some might call it the triumph of the marketplace. The federal government doesn't have enough manpower to shut down the medical marijuana business in Colorado or prosecute all the purveyors and patients. And the voters don't want it.
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Deputy Attorney General James Cole has told U.S. attorneys not to waste resources prosecuting patients or caregivers that are in clear compliance with state medical marijuana laws.
So this is somewhat like the decision of the justice department to not prosecute young people who may not have been born in the U.S. but who have lived here most of their lives. This is how the Obama administration works, but how will a Romney administration work?
Do you really think a guy who doesn't drink alcohol or even coffee, and who has said he will enforce "self deportation" on non documented people, is going to leave things as they are in Colorado and other states? In your wildest dreams!
At the very least, Medical Marijuana users and dispenseries will be harassed to the point where the entire system falls apart, and at worst, many people will get arrested and spend time in prison.
I'll assume that this is an issue that will impact the young people of Colorado the most. They really need to understand what might happen to them under a Romney administration. Since the younger you are, the less likely you are to vote, it seems it would be very beneficial for an Obama PAC to point out a likely very harsh and personal impact a Romney administration will have on the youth of Colorado.