The Attorney General has ‘Reefer Madness’

Is Jeff Sessions misleading or misled about marijuana? Retweet.

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Perhaps you’ve heard about the opioid overdose epidemic. Well, the Attorney General of the United States has a {sarcasm alert} “brilliant” solution…

Go after medical marijuana providers and users in states where it’s already legalized!

In a leaked letter, Sessions actually asked Congressional leaders to clear the way for the Justice Department to prosecute medical marijuana patients! At issue is an amendment Downsize DC has supported since 2006. One of our Action Items about this amendment featured one of our all-time favorite subject lines — “I’ve got a Hinchey in my Rohrbacher“!

It’s charitable to assume the Attorney General is simply old and confused because the alternative is that he’s a liar and tyrant. You’ll see why, in the letter I wrote to Congress, below.

The hardwired letter begins…

I want you to help advance HR 1841, the ‘Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act.’

You can write your own letter or simply copy & paste mine…

Jeff Sessions has a severe case of “Reefer Madness.” He wrote a nonsensical letter to Congressional leaders asking YOU to empower his delusion.

Reefer Madness is a 1936 propaganda film. Today, it’s a joke. But Session’s letter isn’t so funny because he’s the Attorney General here in 2017.

His dubious and ham-handed epistle requests the power to ruin lives. He wants Congress to overturn current law and violate the Tenth Amendment.

In a secret dispatch to House and Senate leaders, Sessions asked Congress to reverse the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment. This amendment prohibits the Justice Department from interfering with states that permit medical marijuana use.

Sessions doesn’t openly express his apparent hatred for the Tenth Amendment, which reserves powers to the various states. He also fails to elaborate on his desire to overturn the legal arrangements of 28 states so as to arrest the suffering occupants who rely on marijuana. Instead, he makes the following bizarre arguments…

First, he rationalizes a crackdown on medical marijuana on the grounds that there’s a “historic drug epidemic.” Well, that epidemic involves opioids (including the still illegal drug heroin). But…

* Marijuana is NOT an opioid
* No one is, has, or will overdose on marijuana
* Pot is far less addictive than opioids[1]

But perhaps, facts don’t matter to a “Reefer Madness” propagandist.

– Opiate overdose levels were 27% less in states with medical marijuana laws in the period from 1999-2010, according to a 2014 study.[2]

– States that allow medical marijuana saw significant declines in pain medication prescriptions.[3]

If Mr. Sessions can’t tell the difference between opioids and cannabinoids, is he qualified to be Attorney General?

Second, the AG also referenced a Colorado case where individuals were charged with selling and shipping pot across state lines. Eight of them were either current or former marijuana sales licensees. As Mike Riggs of Reason explains…

“Sessions seems to think that because several of the alleged conspirators were able to get pot licenses before they allegedly broke state law, the Justice Department needs a blank check to wreak havoc in medical marijuana states. That’s one clumsy bait-and-switch.”[4]

Session’s letter is so ignorant and illogical that Congress should do the opposite. You should not only retain Rohrabacher-Farr, but also pass HR 1841. Repudiate and shutdown the AG’s backward attempts to ruin the lives of medical marijuana patients. If you let Sessions have his way, it will only worsen the opioid epidemic.

HR 1841 is “stuck in committee,” so I insist that YOU do the following three things NOW…

1. Co-sponsor the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act

2. Write a letter requesting immediate hearings on the bill to the following committee chairs and ranking members…
+ Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry: Chair – Frank D. Lucas & Ranking Member – Marcia L. Fudge
+ Subcommittee on Federal Lands: Chair – Tom McClintock & Ranking Member – Colleen Hanabusa
+ Committee on the Judiciary: Chair – Bob Goodlatte & Ranking Member – John Conyers

3. I request to see those letters published on your Congressional website so I can show them to my friends.

Notes:
1. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/02/28/attorney-general-sessions-wants-to-know-the-science-on-marijuana-and-opioids-here-it-is/
2. http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1898878
3. https://news.vice.com/story/sean-spicer-is-wrong-medical-marijuana-could-help-solve-the-opioid-crisis
4. http://reason.com/blog/2017/06/13/in-private-letter-jeff-sessions-asks-con

— END OF SAMPLE LETTER–

Send your letter to Congress. We list the 11 current co-sponsors (only one Republican) under the Background tab of this campaign.

We’re using the old Educate the Powerful system for a bit longer. We’re focused on the new website which is being tested now! So if one of your Reps or Senators is not up-to-date, please hit Reply and let us know.

Thanks for being an ACTIVE DC Downsizer,

Jim Babka, President
DownsizeDC.org, Inc.

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