“This is outrageous”: Politicians react to news that A.G. Sessions is rescinding the Cole Memo
Published: Jan 4, 2018, 8:53 am • Updated: Jan 4, 2018, 10:45 am
By The Cannabist Staff
Politicians from states where marijuana sales are legal released statements and took to Twitter Thursday morning to express their dismay at a report that U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions will rescind the Cole Memo.
Oregon Governor Kate Brown issued a statement:
“Reports that Attorney General Jeff Sessions will roll back federal marijuana policy are deeply concerning and disruptive to our state’s economy. Over 19,000 jobs have been created by the market Oregon worked carefully to build in good faith and in accordance with the Cole Memorandum. The federal government must keep its promise to states that relied on its guidance.
“States are the laboratories of democracy, where progressive policies are developed and implemented for the benefit of their people. Voters in Oregon were clear when they chose for Oregon to legalize the sale of marijuana and the federal government should not stand in the way of the will of Oregonians.
“My staff and state agencies are working to evaluate reports of the Attorney General’s decision and will fight to continue Oregon’s commitment to a safe and prosperous recreational marijuana market.”
Republican Sen. Cory Gardner posted a Tweet blasting Sessions’ reported decision:
“This reported action directly contradicts what Attorney General Sessions told me prior to his confirmation,” the Coloradan posted on Twitter. “With no prior notice to Congress, the Justice Department has trampled on the will of the voters in CO and other states. (President Donald Trump) had it right. This must be left up to the states.”
I am prepared to take all steps necessary, including holding DOJ nominees, until the Attorney General lives up to the commitment he made to me prior to his confirmation.
— Cory Gardner (@SenCoryGardner) January 4, 2018
Colorado congresswoman Diana DeGette, Chief Deputy Whip, said in a statement: “This step could drag us back to the days of raids on legal dispensaries and people living in fear being jailed for using the medical marijuana they need,” DeGette said. “It could create a chilling effect on an industry that employs thousands of people in Colorado alone, where sales now top $1 billion per year. The federal government shouldn’t take punitive steps that undermine the will of our citizens expressed at the state level.”
Denver Mayor Michael Hancock said Denver is an “international model for how to do it right”:
Denver residents voted overwhelmingly for this and we’ve become an international model for how to do it right. Another example that this admin doesn’t listen, doesn’t pay attention, doesn’t get it. https://t.co/YbCgRktvVt@cannabist@CoryGardner@SenBennetCO@RepDianaDeGette
— Michael B. Hancock (@MayorHancock) January 4, 2018
Oregon Sen. Earl Blumenauer, co-sponsor of the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment that protects medical marijuana states released a statement saying:
“This is outrageous. Going against the majority of Americans–including a majority of Republican voters–who want the federal government to stay out of the way is perhaps one of the stupidest decisions the Attorney General has made. One wonders if Trump was consulted–it is Jeff Sessions after all–because this would violate his campaign promise not to interfere with state marijuana laws. It’s time for anyone who cares about this issue to mobilize and push back strongly against this decision.”
There is broad recognition that the War on Drugs is an abject failure. After over $1T spent, the problem is worse than when we started. Its tragic effects felt in every US community & in countries around the globe. It’s past time we change our approach.https://t.co/Ey6Jh5EJwg
— Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) January 3, 2018
Bluemenauer also questioned whether Sessions had talked with Trump about the policy change:
One wonders if Trump was consulted—it is Jeff Sessions after all—because this would violate his campaign promise not to interfere with state marijuana laws. It’s time for ANYONE who cares about this issue to mobilize and push back strongly against this decision. https://t.co/S0neITlP5q
— Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) January 4, 2018
Attorney General Sessions, have you talked to your boss?
cc: @realDonaldTrumphttps://t.co/RcjfqR5fGS
— Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) January 4, 2018
New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, who introduced the Marijuana Justice Act to Congress in August:
We must stop Jeff Sessions’ backwards actions. There is now great urgency to pass the Marijuana Justice Act to legalize marijuana on the federal level.
Now is the time. Call your Senator. https://t.co/Cr8FZjITWIpic.twitter.com/9OMTz3VMjN
— Sen. Cory Booker (@SenBooker) January 4, 2018
Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, who at congressional hearings has pressed the Department of Justice on its stance on marijuana:
pic.twitter.com/xjQOTx6MtS
— Sen. Lisa Murkowski (@lisamurkowski) January 4, 2018
Washington State’s Attorney General’s office pointed to AG Bob Ferguson and Governor Jay Inslee’s letter to Jeff Sessions in August, correcting what they perceived as misinformation Sessions was operating under:
AG Ferguson response on reported action by US AG Jeff Sessions on federal marijuana policy. Read AG Ferguson and @GovInslee‘s letter to Sessions correcting Sessions’ bad information on WA marijuana law here: https://t.co/z1DY0fbnsEpic.twitter.com/i68zhtHc9A
— WA Attorney General (@AGOWA) January 4, 2018
Oregon Senator Ron Wyden, whose state also responded to Sessions saying his letter to them was based on flawed data released a statement:
“Trump promised to let states set their own marijuana policies. Now he’s breaking that promise so Jeff Sessions can pursue his extremist anti-marijuana crusade. Once again the Trump administration is doubling down on protecting states’ rights only when they believe the state is right. Opening the door to go after legal marijuana businesses ignores the will of the majority of Americans and marks yet another socially unjust and economically backward scheme from this administration. Any budget deal Congress considers in the coming days must build on current law to prevent the federal government from intruding in state-legal, voter-supported decisions.”
Trump promised to let states set marijuana policies. Now he’s breaking that promise so Jeff Sessions can pursue his extremist anti-marijuana crusade. https://t.co/EhxfVdC3so
— Ron Wyden (@RonWyden) January 4, 2018
Nevada Rep. Dina Titus:
I will fight for businesses that are legally operating in states, contributing to tax bases, & creating jobs. We don’t need a crackdown. We need to protect states’ rights, respect the voice of voters, and pass laws to prevent this from happening again. https://t.co/0XBLrgf0iM
— Dina Titus (@repdinatitus) January 4, 2018
California Rep. Ted Lieu, whose state just started selling legal recreational marijuana Monday:
Dear Attorney General Jeff Sessions and @TheJusticeDept: Let me give you a list of things more important for federal prosecutors and federal law enforcement to pursue other than marijuana:
1. Basically anything. https://t.co/ctyJui7g4c
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) January 4, 2018
AG Jeff Sessions apparently wants to take America back to the 1920s. Prohibition didn’t work then and it will not work now. Congress needs to pass sensible laws to prevent a monumental waste of precious federal resources chasing Americans who use #cannabis. #thursdaythoughtshttps://t.co/GP3qPyKIve
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) January 4, 2018
California Rep. Ro Khanna called prosecuting marijuana a “civil rights issue“:
Let’s be clear: Trump’s decision to prosecute marijuana use will hurt Black and Latino youth the most. Privileged kids who use these drugs in private schools rarely get prosecuted. This is a civil rights issue. It’s not only bad policy. It’s morally wrong. https://t.co/REIekeWCeY
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) January 4, 2018
The Mayor of Tallahassee and candidate for governor of Florida, Andrew Gillum said Sessions’ goal is to “put more young people & (sic) people of color behind bars for using a plant.”
Sessions is dangerously deluded about our drug policy. This isn’t rooted in science or justice – though that’s little surprise since he has compared marijuana to heroin. While people of every walk of life smoke marijuana, the criminal penalties for doing so are far less equal.
— Andrew Gillum (@AndrewGillum) January 4, 2018
This is an absurd policy decision not based on science. Jeff Sessions has made his goal crystal clear: put more young people & people of color behind bars for using a plant. https://t.co/wDqP7CMmva
— Andrew Gillum (@AndrewGillum) January 4, 2018
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont released a statement:
“No, Attorney General Sessions. Marijuana is not the same as heroin. No one who has seriously studied the issue believes that marijuana should be classified as a Schedule 1 drug beside killer drugs like heroin. Quite the contrary. We should allow states the right to move toward the decriminalization of marijuana, not reverse the progress that has been made in recent years.”
Sal Pace, Pueblo County Commissioner & former Colorado House Democratic Leader issued a statement:
“Any move by the DOJ to reverse cannabis legalization enacted by citizens across the country will be opposed vigorously by a bipartisan national coalition of local elected officials. A reversal of the sovereign voice of the American public is an assault on the intellect of Americans, an assault on the fundamental tenants of democracy, and an attack on the Constitutional guarantee of states’ rights. That is why I am bringing together local elected officials across the country to demand that Congress act immediately to protect the voice of their constituents and allow states to determine their own fate. The American public has spoken loud and clear that states should have the right to determine their own fate on cannabis.
The same 165,000 residents who elected me, voted for Donald Trump and voted in favor of the legalization of marijuana. The citizens from this Trump backing county do not want this economic engine shut down, sending thousands of people to the unemployment line and costing our County government millions in tax revenues.”
New York Senator Kristen Gillibrand issued a statement:
“Attorney General Sessions’s reported decision is a direct attack on patients. Parents should be able to give their sick kids the medicine they need without having to fear that they will be prosecuted. Veterans should be able to come home from combat and use the medicine they need without having to fear they will be prosecuted. This is about public health, and it’s about reforming our broken criminal justice system that throws too many minorities in prison for completely nonviolent offenses. I urge my colleagues to join me in fighting this shortsighted decision and supporting my broadly bipartisan bill, the CARERS Act, to keep the federal government out of the way when doctors and patients decide that medical marijuana is the best treatment for them.”
Topics: California, Colorado, Jeff Sessions, Nevada, Washington state
