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Title: Jeff Sessions says if Americans don’t want him to enforce marijuana laws, they should change them
Source:
Market Watch
URL Source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/je ... 01-11?siteid=yhoof2&yptr=yahoo
Published: Feb 11, 2017
Author: Trey Williams
Post Date: 2017-02-11 12:27:59 by misterwhite
Keywords: None
Views: 15936
Comments: 80
If the American people are worried about freshly confirmed Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ approach to enforcing federal marijuana laws, he says they should get Congress to change them. During his Senate confirmation hearing back in January, Sessions answered questions on marijuana among other issues, but didn’t offer a definitive stance on what marijuana enforcement would look like under his justice department. “I won’t commit to never enforcing federal law, [Sen. Patrick Leahy], but absolutely it’s a problem of resources for the federal government,” Sessions said. “Good judgement on how to handle these cases will be a responsibility of mine, which won’t be an easy decision, but I will try to do my duty in a fair and just way.” Sessions also said he echoes the position former attorney general Loretta Lynch took during her confirmation hearings. Lynch said then she did not support the legalization of marijuana and that it would not be the position of her justice department to do so. Though 28 states have legalized medical marijuana use, eight states have passed recreational laws and 21% of the U.S. population now lives in a state where smoking weed is legal, the federal law still states marijuana is an illegal substance. And the drug is classified as a Schedule I drug along with heroin, LSD and ecstasy. Sessions, in the past, has made it clear he opposes marijuana legalization. “Good people don’t smoke marijuana,” he’s on record saying. And further back he allegedly said he thought KKK members were OK until he learned they smoked marijuana. He has since called that a joke. But in a Trump presidency, he’d be asked to forward the Trump agenda and not his own, and a spokesman for President Trump made it clear Sessions would be implementing the Trump agenda, which is promising for the marijuana industry. Donald Trump has supported state’s rights in legalizing and establishing marijuana policies. Robert Capecchi, director of federal policies at the Marijuana Policy Project, said they are cautiously optimistic the incoming administration will continue current policies and not interfere in state laws. “We remain cautiously optimistic that the Trump administration will refrain from interfering in state marijuana laws,” Capecchi said in a statement following Sessions’ confirmation. “We are hopeful that Mr. Sessions will follow the president’s lead and respect states’ rights on marijuana policy. “It would be shocking if the Trump administration attempted to steamroll the citizens and governments in these states to enforce an increasingly unpopular federal policy.” In the U.S. about 60% of Americans support marijuana legalization, and following the seven states that recently voted to legalize recreation, or medical marijuana, more are looking to take steps toward legalization. At this point, the possibility of additional states taking the plunge, or federal legalization getting closer is unknown, but unlikely. Some of the policies put in place by the Justice Department in the last eight years have been valuable, Sessions said during his hearing, but he’s been critical of the Obama administration’s hands-off approach when it comes to federal marijuana laws. “It’s not so much the attorney general’s job to decide what laws to enforce. We should do our jobs and enforce laws effectively as we’re able,” Sessions said during his hearing. “The U.S. Congress made the possession of marijuana in every state — and the distribution — an illegal act. If that’s something that’s not desired any longer, Congress should pass a law to change the rule.”
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#4. To: misterwhite (#0)
Sincerely...MUD
Sarah Palin “I can’t claim a Bill Clinton and say that I never inhaled.” Martha Stewart “Of course I know how to roll a joint.” Rush Limbaugh Clarence Thomas
God bless them! Who among those in your post still smoke marijuana? Here are just a few smart “celebrities who quit smoking weed:” Lady Gaga Upon realizing that she needed help to get sober, Gaga called on performance artist, Marina Abramovic, to help her curb her weed cravings. Abramovic put her through an intense 3 day rehab at her own home, where she immersed Gaga completely in art. Gaga was able to kick the habit, and now only smokes "a little bit [of weed] at night." Natalie Portman Although Portman was kidding about the cocaine and cheating, it seems that her claims about smoking pot were true. Portman told Entertainment Weekly that she indulged in a little marijuana use in college, but that she's "too old for that now." Paul McCartney "Back then, I was just some guy around London having a ball, and the kids were little, so I'd just try and keep it out of their faces," he explained. "I don't do it anymore. The truth is, I really don't want to set an example for my kids and grandkids. It's now a parent thing." Yelawolf Although their styles seemed to clash, the two had an awesome time on tour together. GZA Although he relapsed a year later when Wu-Tang went on tour, he claims to have quit for good. Nowadays, he doesn't even allow people to smoke joints in his car, because he doesn't like the smell. If one of his buddies wants to get high, they'll have to take it outside. RZA "Making music and weed kind of went together for me," he said. "Many rears, I've been in the studio making music, making hits, and weed was always there, but I've transferred myself to directing now. I'm a movie director. You gotta play it sober. I've been playing it sober. Superman focus. Superman stamina, zooming in." Mark Wahlberg "One day, we were driving and you could smell it from somewhere. My daughter asked what the smell was so I told her it was a skunk. Then she said, 'Sometimes Daddy smells like that!' to me and my wife. So I knew I had quit." J. Cole Cee Lo Green Mark Foster The "Pumped up Kicks" singer took this as a sign to put down the peace pipe for good. Travis Barker Barker was diagnosed and treated for 6 stomach ulcers. He plans to use his sobriety to become a better dad to his children. George Michael In 2012, Michael contracted pneumonia, and slipped into a coma for 3 weeks. He realized that his health took #1 priority, and decided to quit smoking marijuana for good. André 3000 “I was kind of abusing it," he told The Guardian. "I wasn’t looking my best. I had a platinum album out and I would do stuff like go to [the] projects to buy weed." Neil Young “I did it for 40 years," he told The Guardian. "Now I want to see what it’s like to not do it. It’s just a different perspective.” Kid Cudi He decided to quit drinking and smoking pot after his fame led him down a dark path of substance abuse and destructive behavior. Now, he engages in a much more healthy lifestyle, and has adjusted to his celebrity status in a much better way. http://www.ranker.com/list/celebrities-who-quit-smoking-weed/robert-desalvo
#11. To: Gatlin (#7)
Neil Young is a monotone horrible singer... who can only talk through his songs. He is one of the worse singers in history. Hopefully he OD's
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which has done MUCH MORE DAMAGE to this Nation than any silly weed.
#6. To: Mudboy Slim, misterwhite (#4)
“Good people don’t smoke marijuana,” he’s on record saying.
#7. To: Deckard (#6)
“Good people don’t smoke marijuana,” [Sessions is] on record saying.
There are “good people who have smoked marijuana” and quit . Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt told Hollywood Reporter that he eventually grew tired of his Mary Jane habit towards the end of the '90s. It was causing him to feel sluggish and depressed. Pitt said, "I was hiding out from the celebrity thing, I was smoking way too much dope, I was sitting on the couch and just turning into a doughnut and I really got irritated with myself." 
When Lady Gaga injured her hip during her 2013 Born This Way Ball tour, she started smoking pot to ease the pain. Gaga was reportedly smoking up to 15 joints a day, and eventually realized that her habit was a problem. "I was just numbing, numbing, numbing myself then sleeping it off, then getting on stage, killing it in pain, then getting off and smoking, smoking, smoking, not knowing what the pain was," she told Mirror. 
Everyone remembers that infamous line from the SNL skit, "Natalie's Rap:" "When I was at Harvard/I smoked weed every day/I cheated every test/I snorted all that yay." 
Sir Paul McCartney first smoked weed with Bob Dylan back in the '60s, and has been toking on and off for about four decades. However, now that he's getting older, Sir McCartney has decided to quit in order to set a good example for his grandkids. 
In 2011, Yelawolf confessed to the Baltimore Sun that he no longer smoked weed because it gave him anxiety and paranoia. Most people smoke weed to chill out and mellow, but that lifestyle seemed to clash with Yelawolf's style. He went on tour with Wiz Khalifa, and spent many weeks opening for this chilled-out stoner. "I don't even smoke weed," he said. "I scream and jump around, act crazy. He's chill." 
In an interview with New York Magazine in 2007, GZA admitted that he was probably the only member of Wu-Tang Clan at the time who had quit smoking ganja. GZA quit smoking weed in order to be more productive. He said, "I could have done so much more in the past. I'd get up, roll a blunt at seven in the morning. If I played chess online, I wanted a blunt. If I read a book, I would smoke a blunt, and then I'm reading the same page like five times." 
GZA wasn't alone on the sobriety wagon for long! In 2012, RZA confessed in an interview to Chelsea Handler that he had given up the greens for good. Like his fellow Wu-Tang rapper, he sites lack of focus as one of the reasons why he stopped smoking pot. 
When he went onstage to accept Variety's Indie Impact award, no one expected Mark Wahlberg - head of Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch - to state that he had quit smoking weed. Wahlberg, now a successful actor, says he did it for his kids. 
In a special video interview for Hip Hop N More, J. Cole admitted that although he used to smoke, he doesn't anymore. "I just had a phase toward the end of college," he said. "That was my phase, but it was never for me." 
Cee Lo Green quit smoking pot in 2010, despite contributing vocal tracks to Slim Thugs's "Marijuana" the same year. The "Forget You" singer said that he had a panic attack once while smoking weed, and that the experience of lighting up was never the same again for him. 
Surprisingly, Snoop Dogg was the one to convince Mark Foster of Foster the People to quit smoking weed. In an interview with Q, Foster revealed, "I told Snoop, 'I quit smoking but I'd have [a blunt] with you now if I had the chance." Snoop Dogg replied, "Y'know what, brother: sometimes you gotta slow down and focus on your s--t." 
Travis Barker Travis Barker is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list Celebrities Who Quit Smoking Weed Photo: uploaded by Robert DeSalvo Travis Barker admits that he "used to love smoking weed," but after a cancer scare in 2012, the Blink-182 drummer decided to give it up for good. "I would smoke weed at night if I had anxiety. I always thought I'd be able to do that for the rest of my life, but when your health is on the line, you don't mess around." 
Wham!'s frontman, George Michael, tried to cut back on pot in 2009. He claimed to have decreased his weed intake a lot, slimming down the number of joints he smoked per day to only 8 or 9. 
During his time performing with Outkast, singer Andre 3000 said he'd keep an ounce of weed on him at all times. However, in 1998, the "Hey Ya" singer gave up drinking, smoking weed, and consuming animal products altogether. 
For nearly four decades, Neil Young has been toking weed. But after suffering a stroke in 2005, he decided to quit drinking and smoking all mind-altering substances. Young also quit smoking pot in order to have a clear head while he worked on his memoir, Waging Heavy Peace. 
Kid Cudi quit smoking weed because he couldn't handle the pressure of his overnight success. He told Headkrack's Hip Hop Spot,"I couldn't deal with fame, short and simple. For me, I could not wrap my head around the fact that a week before I blew up, I was just a regular dude."
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