The left eats its own

Pro-Joe Biden deny Joe Biden did anything wrong:



Really? How about this?

Just like herpes

Jeff Sessions has stated he is going to running for Senator. Hoping to get his old job back. As far as marijuana legalization goes that is very bad news. Sessions is an old style drug warrior. If he had it his way those that ran dispensaries would be executed along with the consumers. If he regains his Senate seat that would be disastrous . If you have to vote Democrat on this one only go for it. A freshman Democrat is less harmful than Sessions who is beloved in the GOP and has a lot of pull.

The Coyote and the Roadrunner-Washington DC style

In the most epic battle in his career. Congressman Adam Schiff is once again searching for what is going to justify his actions. He is taking on the characteristics of a coyote. A Wylie E. Coyote as he tracks his prey who is the rightfully elected President of the people, Donald J.Trump, also known by the codename "Roadrunner".


Each and everyday Wylie waits desperately for vindication and success. But to no avail. He has until November 2020 to pull it off or don't even bother. Everything will have dramatically changed after that. He may not have the majority like he does now.

Socialized Murder

(Tea Party 247) – The National Health Service (NHS) in the UK has announced they will be withdrawing treatment from patients who fail the golden progressive standard of tolerance and acceptance.

That’s right: they’ll be denying medical care to racists or sexists.
Patients will be subject to a “sports-style disciplinary yellow card and then final red card in which treatment would be withdrawn as soon as is safe” the North Bristol NHS Trust announced on their website.

The policy would not just cover “Threatening and offensive language” but also “Racist or sexist language, gestures or behaviour” in a disturbingly ambiguous phrasing, as well as more generally, as well as “malicious allegations.”

This is a concerning caveat, considering the NHS has, in the past, been caught up in large-scale malpractice scandals which were initially denied by hospitals and staff.

“We have staff from many different backgrounds, from all over the world, and we pride ourselves on our commitment to equality which is a fundamental value of the NHS,” commented Andrea Young, Chief Executive for North Bristol NHS Trust.

“We’re sending a strong signal that any racism or discrimination is completely unacceptable – we want staff to challenge and report it and we want everyone to know that it will have consequences.”

The trust does not, conveniently, explain exactly how broad the definition of “offensive” will on which to base withdrawal of treatment.

“We have staff from many different backgrounds, from all over the world, and we pride ourselves on our commitment to equality which is a fundamental value of the NHS,” commented Andrea Young, Chief Executive for North Bristol NHS Trust.

“We’re sending a strong signal that any racism or discrimination is completely unacceptable – we want staff to challenge and report it and we want everyone to know that it will have consequences.”
The trust does not, conveniently, explain exactly how broad the definition of “offensive” will on which to base withdrawal of treatment.

Breitbart explains:

For example, in late 2017 an NHS patient who requested a female nurse to carry out a cervical smear complained when the hospital sent a person with “an obviously male appearance… close-cropped hair, a male facial appearance and voice, large number of tattoos and facial stubble” who insisted “My gender is not male. I’m a transsexual”.

It is not clear whether the patient could have fallen foul of the Bristol policy had it been in place and the nurse had chosen to take offence — and nor is it clear how far the trust’s assurances that it will only withdraw treatment once clinically safe extend, and if patients could, for example, be denied diagnostic procedures or so-called routine

operations such as hip replacements, for which many patients have to wait eight months or more.
British state authorities have recently been showing quite a zeal for political correctness. In 2012, Foster parents caring for “not indigenous White British” children had them taken away by Labour-run Rotherham Borough Council in 2012 because they were members of the UK’s Independence Party (UKIP), then led by Nigel Farage.

Joyce Thacker, the Strategic Director of Children and Young People’s Services said that she was concerned that UKIP opposed mass immigration which made the foster parents incapable of meeting the “cultural and ethnic needs” of non-British children or the “active promotion of multiculturalism.”

Another NHS trust for the area, the University Hospitals Briston NHS Foundation Trust has displayed painful progressive political correctness, once having ordered the removal of the British flag from security staff stab vests after someone claimed that the Union Jack was “offensive.”

Source

Who lives, who dies. You may want to check the Labour Party website to see if your name is on the die list. Are we going to define "racist" as "anybody that believes a certain race is above the rest and that the rest are inferior." Are we going to define "sexism" as the belief that a particular gender is better than the other and the other is inferior". Which is an unbias definition. Or will go the PC route? "Only white males are racists and sexists". With this crowd I'm betting on the latter. What if you've had a bad day or dropped something on your toes and there is momentary pain and you say something offensive? Can you be denied medical services because you unconsciously said something on the prohibited list? What if you going to court because you were accused of a sex crime, just merely accused and you need medical attention. Will they treat you, deny you health care or worse yet murder you because you've been accused of a misogynistic sex crime and the medical staff are indoctrinated with radical feminism? They'll justify it as "one less rapist in the world" when you haven't even been tried for it and no verdict rendered. What if a member of the medical staff doesn't like you and makes a false accusation against you? What if you are a victim of a false accusation of racism and/or sexism? Is a mere accusation considered undeniable proof you are guilty?

Does this mean that a member of the protected class can taunt a white male with insults and throws harmful objects such as rocks at that white male without any repercussions but if that white male attacks back or merely defends himself from being physically attacked he will be punished for it? What if hospital staff try to extort money from the patients (give me money or I put your name on the die list) or their friends or family (give us money or you and/or the patient will die). What if your name is accidentally placed on the die list? Will you live long enough to fight it and win? What if they hate people who contest their decisions and puts you on the die list for doing it? So many questions yet no answers.

Stand up to the left by saying no to impeachment

From Senator Rand Paul of RandPAC:

The left is up in arms, resorting against to violent threats against me. Social media is a firestorm or attacks. And many of my Senate colleagues ran to hide.

What is it all about? Once again it’s about left and their obsession with Donald Trump

It’s about their hatred and their quest to impeach

Will you stand with me and with President Trump today?

I need your help – because I need the President and my colleagues to know the social media mobs won’t win. That the fake news media won’t win. That we will have the courage to stand up and fight.

The partisan impeachment witch hunt is speeding up. The democrats voted nearly unanimously for a full inquiry. But witnesses can and are still being deposed in secret. And the so called whistle blower is being kept hidden.

We all deserve to face our accusers.

It’s time to END the witch hunt once and for all.

Please stand with us today

SUPPORT RANDPAC

And if you can help me spread the work through RandPac, I would appreciate it. It’s time to activate those who are sick and tired of the left and their dirty attacks

I can do more of that with YOUR help today.

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In Liberty,

Rand Paul

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Where is ISIS going now that it's leaderless?

Now that the ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead what is the rest of ISIS going to do? Do they have another charismatic personality like the one Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had? He had these people believing that he was a prophet on top of being a leader of a terrorist group. Does his replacement possess these traits or if not then there is no replacement thus no unifying factor which means this group may form factions as independent groups because some groups hate others. There will be no unity. The replacement may just look at what happened to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and resign on the spot. Which is a smart move considering the previous leader is no longer around to brag about it. Will these factions war amongst themselves? If they do what about the ones that sit it out. Will they look to the rest of the middle east as their targets? Or will they hang it up too? Let's see. Stay tuned.

UPDATE: Since publication of the preceding article I was unaware we had also gone after the number 2 man in the ISIS hierarchy. Taking out the founder and his second in command tells everyone that being part of ISIS can be hazardous to their health. Very few will want the job at this point.

China Warns Citizens Living In Canada Against Consuming Legal Cannabis

The Chinese government has issued a warning to its citizens living in Canada after the country moved into the second phase of cannabis legalization last Thursday. A statement released by the Chinese consulate in Calgary stopped short of barring Chinese citizens from buying or consuming the drug, but did counsel them to “fully understand the harmfulness of cannabis products.”

They are very aware of the brutality of the Chinese government. Especially the courageous Hong Kong protesters whom I wish the best of luck.

China has seen a wave of Reefer Madness-like anti-cannabis hysteria arise, heightened by fears over the spillover effects of marijuana regulation in parts of the US and Canada.

Ever hear of Maoism? That is some frightening shit. It was so bad that people ate their dead relatives instead of burying them. Cannibalism. That is some psycho shit. I'll take cannabisism over cannibalism any day.

The country has not limited its outrage to foreign nations. A Communist Party-led campaign against the mafia has resulted in the shuttering of Shanghai nightlife venues. In Beijing, foreign bar and restaurant owners report having been surprised with urine tests to prove that they are free of cannabis and other drugs.

It must be quite a unique experience urinating at gunpoint.

The Chinese rejection of marijuana has even reached the ears of the White House. In June, an official from the China National Narcotics Control Commission told reporters that cannabis legalization in the US and Canada has led to a 25 percent spike in marijuana use in China. In that instance, President Donald Trump countered by saying China is responsible for “flooding” the United States with illegal fentanyl.

Hey Chicoms. Did you really think you were going to punk my country,the United States Of America? Guess again, bitches. Go Protesters.

Though Canada legalized marijuana last October, the country has been slowly phasing in the regulation of particular cannabis products. Last week, on the anniversary of that initial legalization legislation, new regulations for certain cannabis derivatives took effect, including those related to edibles, beverages, vapes, dabs, and topical products.

I don't want to sound like someone's dad but be careful with vapes.

Cannabis Consumers Face Harsh Penalties

Anybody that the Chicoms don't like is in deep shit if they are in China's jurisdiction. Captured protesters are not going to fare much better.

This week China cautioned its citizens against THC products in particular and bringing any cannabis back to the country in general. Earlier this summer, a Canadian man was arrested on drug charges in Yantai, the most recent in a string of people from the country who have found themselves in trouble in China for similar offenses.

Chinese citizens have good reason to heed their government when it comes to sending or bringing cannabis back home. The death penalty is the maximum sentence that can be handed down for trafficking illegal substances in China, and the country has not proven reluctant to hand down that harshest punishment of all. In fact, a Canadian citizen is currently facing execution after being convicted of conspiracy to smuggle 489 pounds of meth into the country.

The Chicoms have no problem executing disidents as well.Look at Tiananmen Square.

Should the government make good on that sentence (which is being appealed), it wouldn’t be the first time China executes a foreigner for trafficking illegal drugs. In 2014, the government put a Japanese man to death, as well as a Filipina courier whose family asked that her name stay out of the press in 2013, and Akmal Shaikh from Great Britain in 2009. Last year, a US college student was released after serving eight months in a Chinese prison on cannabis trafficking charges that turned out to be false.

Smart move,Chicoms. As long as that young American comes home in good health we can be reasonable. You don't want to fuck with Trump or the bald eagle will get you.

China’s no tolerance views on marijuana

China has no tolerance views on everything.

are surprising when regarded in the historical context. Earlier this year, researchers discovered ten ritual braziers in a western China tomb which constitute the earliest known evidence of cannabis being smoked. The vessels are thought to date from at least 2,500 years ago.

Source

Trump kicks ass

Traffic Conditions

Flower marijuana is the best.

We are given a plant. A very beneficial plant that is soothing, healing and beneficial to us. It is perfect the way it is. Just grow it, dry it, roll it up and fire it up. Not terribly complicated as far as plans go nor is it burdensome. It is perfect the way it is but is that good enough for us? No, we have to fuck with it and do this here and do that there until we have some concoction that may or may not be fatal. As far as vaping goes there are fatalities. The irony is that vaping was sold to the public as a safer alternative to smoking. With marijuana that is not the case. Vaping THC, which is man-made, has caused people to die while natural flower marijuana continues to be the safest substance on the planet. We do this every time all the time. When we do it kicks our ass. The edibles are pretty safe along with the flower buds so let's stay in that range. When it comes to vaping just say no.

Joe Biden threatens to cut off aid to Ukraine if they investigate Hunter

The American mainstream media is trying to make Trump look like a loon for bringing this up. With their "nothing to see here. Just more Trump lies" dismissive attitude. They hate Trump and will do anything to ruin him. We literally have a left-wing base that will cut off its nose to spite its face. It has just become pathological at this point with fringe elements setting the narrative. The Democratic Party has scrapped the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights (their hatred of due process being given to their enemies if their enemies are accused of a crime.) and they have replaced them with Marxist/Leninist ideals and The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital. With Antifa as their foot soldiers, they can enforce their beliefs through terrorism. They hate the 2nd Amendment if it protects you from violence from them aka Antifa. Antifa will be armed. Their foot soldiers have been seen carrying rifles. I'm sure they will be exempt from gun control laws while you and your family are penalized under them. Thus putting you and those you care about at the mercy of Antifa.

Dershowitz: Today's leftists as 'dangerous' as Stalinists

The hard-Left is a much greater threat to civil liberties in the United States than the hard-right, Harvard professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz wrote.

“People on the ‘woke’ hard-Left seem so self-righteous about their monopoly over Truth (with a capital T) that many of them apparently see no reason to allow dissenting, politically incorrect, views to be expressed,” Dershowitz wrote in an Aug. 31 analysis for Gatestone Institute.

“Such incorrect views, they claim, make them feel ‘unsafe.’ They can feel safe only if the views they share are allowed to be expressed. Feeling unsafe is the new trigger word for demanding censorship.”

Dershowitz said there is a “dangerous similarity” between America’s hard-Left “wokers” and Stalinists.

The similarity, Dershowitz wrote, “is that both disdain due process for those they deem guilty of political incorrectness or other crimes and sins. They reject any presumption of innocence or requirement that the accuser bears the burden of proof.”

Dershowitz continued: “For Stalinist and ‘wokers,’ there is no uncertainty or fallibility. If they believe someone is guilty, he must be. Why do we need a cumbersome process for determining guilt? The identities of the accuser and accused are enough. Privileged white men are guilty perpetrators. Intersectional minorities are innocent victims. Who needs to know more? Any process, regardless of its fairness, favors the privileged over the unprivileged.”

Hard- right extremists would and have used violence “to silence those with whom they disagree. They are indeed dangerous,” Dershowitz wrote. “But they have far less influence on our future leaders than their counterparts on the hard-Left.”

Those on the hard-right, Dershowitz noted, “are not teaching our college-age children and grandchildren. They are marginalized academically, politically and in the media. The opposite is true of hard-Left Stalinists. Many have no idea who Stalin even was, but they are emulating his disdain for free speech and due process in the interests of achieving the unrealizable utopia they both sought. They also have in common the attitude that noble ends justify ignoble means.”

Dershowitz continued: “No university student has the right to be safe from uncomfortable ideas, only from physical threats, and any student who claims to be in physical fear of politically incorrect ideas does not belong at a university. The most extreme example of this distortion of the role of higher education took place at my own university when a distinguished dean of a Harvard residential college was fired from his deanship because some "woke" students claimed to feel unsafe in his presence because he was representing, as a defense lawyer, a man accused of rape.”

The concept of political correctness, Dershowitz pointed out, “originated in the Stalinist Soviet Union, where Truth — political, artistic, religious — was determined by the central committee of the Communist Party and any deviation was regarded as unacceptable. To be sure, there is a vast difference between how Stalin treated political incorrectness and how the ‘woke’ generation treats it. Stalin murdered those who deviated from his Truth, while ‘wokers’ generally shun and discredit, though there has been occasional violence from elements of the hard-Left toward those who deviate from their Truth. But both produce a similar result: less dissent, less reliance on the marketplace of ideas and more self-censorship.”

For many of the “wokers” on the hard-Left, Dershowitz wrote, “freedom of speech is nothing more than a weapon of the privileged used to subjugate the unprivileged. It is a bourgeois concept that emanates from an anachronistic white, male constitution that is irrelevant to the contemporary world. Free speech for me — the underprivileged — but not for thee — the privileged. That is what the ‘wokers’ want. Affirmative action for speech!”

“That is why I make the controversial claim that today the ‘woke’ hard-Left is more dangerous to civil liberties than the right,” Dershowitz wrote.

Source

Official approval

I just received my official government approval grade. I felt very honored that they held me in high esteem.

The Clinton's are the real racists not Trump

USA USA USA

Congress Schedules Hearing To Discuss Ending Marijuana Prohibition

A major congressional subcommittee will hold a hearing on marijuana policy next week, Marijuana Moment has learned.

Though few details about the meeting are currently available, the House Judiciary Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security Subcommittee are expected to discuss various legislative proposals to allow states to set their own cannabis policies without fear of federal intervention.

Several sources who did not wish to be identified shared with Marijuana Moment the names of witnesses expected to soon receive formal invitations to testify before the panel on Wednesday, July 10. Given the backgrounds of these individuals, it seems apparent that committee members will be discussing not whether the U.S. should end federal cannabis prohibition, but will focus primarily on how to do it.

Witnesses are anticipated to include Malik Burnett, a physician at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health who previously served as the Washington, D.C. policy manager at the Drug Policy Alliance’s Office of National Affairs, where he helped lead a successful ballot initiative campaign to legalize cannabis in the nation’s capital in 2014.

Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, who announced in January that her office would no longer prosecute cannabis possession cases and would work to clear the records of certain individuals with prior marijuana convictions, is also being invited to testify.

David Nathan, a physician and board president of the pro-legalization group Doctors for Cannabis Regulation (DFCR), will also appear before the committee.

He told Marijuana Moment that he looks “forward to discussing the evidence-based health effects of cannabis, the failure of prohibition, the inadequacy of decriminalization, and the public health and social justice benefits of effective regulation.”

“DFCR physicians have successfully fought for legalization in states around the country,” Nathan said. “Now DFCR is proud to advocate for the broad majority of Americans—both Republicans and Democrats—who want our government to remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act and finally end the specter of federal interference with state cannabis laws.”

Finally, Neal Levine, CEO of Cannabis Trade Federation, will be the minority witness—which is noteworthy in and of itself, as Levine advocates for legalization, while one might expect the minority Republican party to invite someone who shares an opposing perspective on ending prohibition.

“I cannot comment on what has not been announced publicly by the committee, but I would welcome the opportunity to share the perspective of our members,” Levine, who previously served as a staffer for the Marijuana Policy Project, told Marijuana Moment. “We are especially well positioned to discuss the challenges arising from the inconsistency between state and federal cannabis laws.”

(Full disclosure: the Cannabis Trade Federation and its affiliate CTF Action have sponsored Marijuana Moment.)

After this story was initially published, the subcommittee posted an official notice for the hearing. It is titled “Marijuana Laws in America: Racial Justice and the Need for Reform” and will begin at 10:00 AM ET.

While lawmakers aren’t expected to vote on any particular bill at the hearing, it will nonetheless be one of the most significant congressional developments on marijuana reform to date.

The Judiciary Committee, under which this subcommittee falls, wields particular influence in advancing broad changes to federal drug laws, and Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) designated it as the panel to bring about the end of cannabis prohibition in a blueprint to legalization in the 116th Congress.

“For the first time in recent memory, there will be a candid conversation in the Judiciary Committee about the failures of marijuana prohibition in the United States and how people have been impacted,” Justin Strekal, political director of NORML, told Marijuana Moment. “We look forward to working with the subcommittee to best inform the conversation and the public at large.”

Legislation that could be marked up by the panel in the future includes the Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States (STATES) Act, the Marijuana Justice Act, the Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act and the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, is also said to be working on his own bill to end federal marijuana prohibition, but no details have yet been announced.

Notably, every single Democratic member of the full Judiciary Committee, including the chairman, voted in favor of amendment protecting cannabis programs in all states, U.S. territories and Washington, D.C. from Justice Department intervention last month. Six Republican members of the panel joined them in support of the measure, which was attached to spending legislation that has since cleared the House. The bipartisan nature of that vote indicates that further reform legislation stands a strong chance of passing in the committee.

Besides Blumenauer’s House-passed amendment protecting cannabis programs, this Congress has also seen several other hearings on cannabis issues. The House Veterans’ Affairs Committee discussed four pieces of legislation concerning veterans and marijuana last month, and the House Small Businesses Committee also convened to address opportunities and barriers for small cannabis businesses under the federal framework of prohibition.

In March, a bipartisan bill that would provide protections for banks that service cannabis businesses cleared the House Financial Services Committee following a hearing on the issue, and a full floor vote on that legislation could be coming soon.

Unlike the new Judiciary hearing, the minority witnesses at the Financial Services and Small Business hearings—representatives of the prohibitionist group Smart Approaches to Marijuana and the Heritage Foundation, respectively—opposed legalization.

Source

Congress Votes To Block Feds From Enforcing Marijuana Laws In Legal States

The House of Representatives approved a far-reaching measure on Thursday to prevent the Department of Justice from interfering with state marijuana laws, including those allowing recreational use, cultivation and sales.

The amendment, which also shields cannabis laws in Washington, D.C. and U.S. territories, is now attached to a large-scale appropriations bill to fund parts of the federal government for Fiscal Year 2020.

The inclusion of adult-use programs represents a significant expansion of an existing policy that protects only local medical cannabis laws from federal intervention which was first enacted in 2014 and has since been extended through annual spending bills.

The broader rider was approved in a floor vote of 267 to 165, a tally that is considered by legalization supporters to be an indication of how much support there is in Congress for more comprehensive and permanent changes to federal marijuana policies.

“This is the most significant vote on marijuana reform policy that the House of Representatives has ever taken,” said NORML Political Director Justin Strekal. “Today’s action by Congress highlights the growing power of the marijuana law reform movement and the increasing awareness by political leaders that the policy of prohibition and criminalization has failed.”

Cannabis Trade Federation CEO Neal Levine agreed with the importance of the legislative victory.

“The historic nature of this vote cannot be overstated," he said. "For the first time, a chamber of Congress has declared that the federal government should defer to state cannabis laws."

Aaron Smith, executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association, called the vote "without a doubt the biggest victory for federal cannabis policy reform to date, and a hopeful sign that the harmful policies of marijuana prohibition will soon be a relic of the past."

The measure, sponsored by Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Tom McClintock (R-CA), would bar the Department of Justice from spending money to prevent states and territories from "implementing their own laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of marijuana."

In 2015, a nearly identical measure came just nine flipped votes short of passage on the House floor. Since then, the number of states with full legalization laws has more than doubled, meaning that far more lawmakers now represent constituents who stand to benefit from its protections.

“The end of marijuana prohibition has never been closer. When Drug Policy Alliance and a small band of allies first worked on this amendment in 2015, we were told that we didn’t stand a chance," DPA Director of National Affairs Michael Collins said. "But we convinced members this was the right thing to do, and four years on, victory is sweet."

"Now is the time for Democrats to pivot to passing legislation that will end prohibition through a racial justice lens, making sure that the communities most impacted by our racist marijuana laws have a stake in the future of legalization," he said. "To do anything less would be to repeat an injustice.”

On Wednesday, the House approved a similar amendment protecting the marijuana laws of Indian tribes by a voice vote, and no member requested a roll call vote, so that language is also now attached to the spending bill.

“We’re watching the growth of this industry, a multibillion-dollar industry. We’re watching state after state move forward,” Blumenauer said in a floor debate on the state protection amendment on Wednesday evening. “Every one of us on the floor of the House who are here now represent areas that have taken action. We have had embedded in our legislation protections for medical marijuana. And this would simply extend that same protection to prevent the Department of Justice interfering with adult use. I strongly, strongly urge that we build on the legacy that we’ve had in the past, that we move this forward to allow the federal government to start catching up to where the rest of the states are.”


Eleanor Holmes Norton
✔
@EleanorNorton
Tonight, my amendment with @repblumenauer to prohibit the DOJ from using its funds to prevent jurisdictions from implementing their own medical and recreational marijuana laws passed in the House. Thank you to @repblumenauer for working with me to include D.C.

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4:33 PM - Jun 20, 2019
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In a letter circulated to colleagues prior to the vote, McClintock wrote that "the issue at hand is whether the federal government has the constitutional authority to dictate policy to states on an issue which occurs strictly within their own borders."

"I do not believe the federal government has that authority, but even if it did, states should determine their own criminal justice policies," he wrote. "This is how our constitutional system was designed to function."

Don Murphy, director of federal policies for the Marijuana Policy Project, said that Blumenauer and McClintock "deserve credit for their early leadership on marijuana policy reform, which dates back to the days when it was just good policy, not good politics too."

The fate of the cannabis measures in the Senate is unknown for now. Historically that chamber's Appropriations Committee has been relatively open to attaching marijuana riders to spending bills, and has consistently approved the medical cannabis protections. But the body's Republican leadership may be reluctant to take the further step of also tying the Justice Department's hands when it comes to enforcing federal prohibition against licensed businesses and consumers in states that allow recreational marijuana use and sales.


Dina Titus
✔
@repdinatitus
The House just made history! I’m so proud to have voted with my colleagues to puff, puff, pass an amendment to prevent the @DOJ from interfering with state cannabis programs. This progress is outstanding news for Nevada and so many states across the country.

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2:44 PM - Jun 20, 2019
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House Democratic leadership urged their conference to support the measure in a whip email on Thursday, and only eight members of the party voted against it.

While the majority of Republicans voted against the rider, 41 GOP members supported it.

The passage of the state protection amendment comes despite congressional offices receiving an 11th-hour email saying Greenwich Biosciences, maker of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved CBD-based medication Epidiolex, wanted lawmakers to defeat it.

The message to congressional staff claimed that the measure is "overly broad and could be interpreted as impacting the ability of the DOJ to assist the FDA with any enforcement action that may need to be taken to ensure the public safety."

But Collins, of DPA, pointed out that if that were true, it would also apply to the current medical cannabis rider that's been part of federal law for nearly five years.

It "doesn’t pass the laugh test,” he said. "Who are Dems going to side with: Big Pharma or people trying to end the drug war?”

A company media representative didn't respond to a phone message seeking comment.

Earlier on Thursday, the House approved an amendment from Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-CA) that directs the Food and Drug Administration to establish a process for regulating CBD in foods and dietary supplements.

Another measure passed in a voice vote, from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), shifts $5 million away from the Drug Enforcement Administration toward an opioid treatment program.

An additional Ocasio-Cortez amendment aimed at removing barriers to research on psychedelic drugs such as psilocybin and MDMA was soundly defeated on the House floor last week.

The House is set to consider another amendment on the spending legislation in the coming days that would allow military veterans to receive medical marijuana recommendations from Department of Veterans Affairs doctors.

A separate spending bill moving through the House already contains language to protect banks from being punished for working with state-legal cannabis businesses and removes a longstanding rider that has prevented Washington, D.C. from spending its own local tax dollars to legalize and regulate marijuana sales.

Meanwhile, standalone cannabis legislation is also advancing.

A comprehensive marijuana banking bill was cleared by the Financial Services Committee in March and is expected to receive a floor vote next month. The Veterans' Affairs Committee held a hearing on four separate pieces of legislation concerning cannabis and military veterans on Thursday. And the Small Business Committee hosted a Wednesday hearing on issues facing cannabis firms, with the panel's chairwoman announcing she would soon file a bill on the issue.
Source

This is huge. Never before in history has this ever happened before. We've come a long way. Now we lobby the Senate. If it passes the Senate we lobby Trump for his signature thus making these reforms the laws of the land.

Victor Davis Hanson: Mueller Probe Could Backfire on Those Who Fabricated Russia-Collusion Narrative

Victor Davis Hanson pieces together the conspiracy between James Clapper of the National Security Agency,James Comey of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and John Brennan of the Central Intelligence Agency and how they formed a coup to try to topple a voter-approved President.

With Joe Biden it's all about the power-Stalin style

In a 1974 interview for the Washingtonian magazine, Biden explained to interviewer Kitty Kelley that “politics is power.”

“And, whether you like it or not, young lady,” Biden told Kelley, “us cruddy politicians can take away that First Amendment of yours if we want to.”

He went on to say that he loved being a politician because it has so much power, and is better for “mankind” than doctors and “Indian chiefs.”

“I am proud to be a politician,” Biden said. “There is no other walk of life which can do more good for mankind than politics. It influences everything that happens to the American people.”

Politics should be the most honorable of professions,” he continued. “Those of you who are doctors and lawyers and Indian chiefs in the audience, how can any of you possibly do as much good, if you are very good at what you do, as I can do if I am very good at what I can do?”

‘You can’t,” Biden added. “So the point is, this is where the action is.”

Fast forward 45 years, and ask: what has Joe Biden done in government since then that’s done “good for mankind”?

Interestingly, after the interview was re-published in 2015, Biden’s team pushed back on his somewhat pro-life stance on abortion rather than his egregious and authoritarian comments over the First Amendment.

Source

Meet the new boss same as the old boss

A powerful House Committee cleared a drug policy reform amendment for consideration on the House floor on Monday. But at the same time, it blocked a separate marijuana reform proposal from advancing.

The measure moving to a full House vote, introduced by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), would eliminate a long-standing rider on a spending bill that prohibits federal agencies from using funds for “any activity that promotes the legalization of any drug or other substance in Schedule I” of the Controlled Substances Act.

The congresswoman argued in a summary of her proposal that the current provision impedes valuable research into substances that have therapeutic potentials such as psilocybin and MDMA. Cannabis is also listed among those substances as a Schedule I drug.

The amendment blocked from advancing to the floor, filed by Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA), would have prevented the Department of Education from denying or limiting “any funding or assistance to institutions of higher education” that allow the use or possession of medical cannabis on campus in states where it is legal.

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), chair of the House Rules Committee, said last year that he was “not going to block marijuana amendments like my predecessor has done.”

“I’m not going to block marijuana amendments,” he said last year shortly after Democrats took back control of the House in the midterm elections. “People ought to bring them to the floor, they should be debated and people ought to vote the way they feel appropriate.”

The rider that Ocasio-Cortez’s amendment would remove has been attached to spending legislation for the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education since at least 1996.

The congresswoman’s effort comes at an especially relevant time, as jurisdictions across the U.S. are pursuing psilocybin reform with a focus on the fungi’s medical potential. Voters in Denver approved a local measure to decriminalize the substance in May, and last week the Oakland City Council unanimously passed a similar measure that also applies to other psychedelics including ayahuasca, mescaline and ibogaine.

Just before the Rules Committee meeting on Monday, Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL) signed on as cosponsors of the amendment.


Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
✔
@AOC
We now have *bipartisan support* for our amendment allowing expanded research into psychedelics.

This is important, as several studies have shown promise in treatment-resistant PTSD, severe depression, & more.

The War on Drugs has caused so much harm. It’s time to reverse it.

Tom Angell 🌳📰
✔
@tomangell
NEW: Reps. @mattgaetz and @RoKhanna have just been added as cosponsors of @AOC’s amendment to expand research on psilocybin, MDMA and other psychedelic drugs.

The Rules Committee decides tonight whether this can go to the House floor...

BACKGROUND:https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomangell/2019/06/08/aoc-pushes-to-make-it-easier-to-study-shrooms-and-other-psychedelic-drugs/ …

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Correa’s amendment on medical marijuana at colleges and universities would have helped undercut a major reason some administrators say they won’t allow even approved patients to bring cannabis on campus: the threatened loss of federal funds over a failure to bar federally illegal drug use and possession.

“It is frustrating that patients who are seeking to improve their position in life by attending college would be forced to choose between their education and their medication,” University of Utah NORML Director Pedro Padilla told Marijuana Moment.

While the Democratic-controlled House has produced several wide-ranging marijuana bills this congressional session, including a cannabis banking bill expected to hit the floor in the coming weeks, it’s apparent that there’s strong interest in advancing reform through the appropriations process.

House Appropriations Committee reports released so far this year call for the expansion of research into medical cannabis, funding the implementation of hemp regulations, tackling the challenges associated with impaired driving, creating an alternative regulatory framework for CBD and ensuring that military veterans don’t lose their benefits due to their involvement in state-legal cannabis markets.

A committee report published on Monday also implored the federal government to reevaluate its employment polices as it pertains to workers who use cannabis in accordance with state law.

McGovern did not say during Monday’s Rules Committee meeting why he chose to block the medical marijuana amendment from advancing despite his previous pledges to allow such proposals to advance for consideration by the full House.

He had joined marijuana policy reform advocates in criticizing his predecessor, then-Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX), for consistently impeding cannabis proposals from advancing.

The overall spending bill and amendments made in order will be debated on the floor this week.

This is bullshit. We voted these people into office to represent us not undermine us. I am really pissed off over this one. If you are too and you live in his district you can contact him and ask why he pulled this stunt.

Long line at a Trump rally

Ever wonder why the mainstream non-Fox media never shows the audience at Trump rallies? Now you know.

Trump Tweets of ‘Signed Deal’ With Mexico to Control Migration, Lifts Threat of Tariffs

President Donald Trump on Friday evening took to Twitter to announce that a “signed agreement” has been reached that will see Mexico take additional actions to control migration through Mexico into the U.S. in exchange for a suspension of tariffs on goods from Mexico that were set to take effect on Monday.


Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
· 2h
I am pleased to inform you that The United States of America has reached a signed agreement with Mexico. The Tariffs scheduled to be implemented by the U.S. on Monday, against Mexico, are hereby indefinitely suspended. Mexico, in turn, has agreed to take strong measures to...


Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
....stem the tide of Migration through Mexico, and to our Southern Border. This is being done to greatly reduce, or eliminate, Illegal Immigration coming from Mexico and into the United States. Details of the agreement will be released shortly by the State Department. Thank you!

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The State Dept. released a joint declaration made by the U.S. and Mexico with this overview of both parties' commitments:

Mexican Enforcement Surge

Mexico will take unprecedented steps to increase enforcement to curb irregular migration, to include the deployment of its National Guard throughout Mexico, giving priority to its southern border. Mexico is also taking decisive action to dismantle human smuggling and trafficking organizations as well as their illicit financial and transportation networks. Additionally, the United States and Mexico commit to strengthening bilateral cooperation, including information sharing and coordinated actions to better protect and secure our common border.

Migrant Protection Protocols

The United States will immediately expand the implementation of the existing Migrant Protection Protocols across its entire Southern Border. This means that those crossing the U.S. Southern Border to seek asylum will be rapidly returned to Mexico where they may await the adjudication of their asylum claims.

In response, Mexico will authorize the entrance of all of those individuals for humanitarian reasons, in compliance with its international obligations, while they await the adjudication of their asylum claims. Mexico will also offer jobs, healthcare, and education according to its principles.

The United States commits to work to accelerate the adjudication of asylum claims and to conclude removal proceedings as expeditiously as possible.

Further Actions

Both parties also agree that in the event the measures adopted do not have the expected results, they will take further actions. Therefore, the United States and Mexico will continue their discussions on the terms of additional understandings to address irregular migrant flows and asylum issues, to be completed and announced within 90 days, if necessary.

Ongoing Regional Strategy

The United States and Mexico reiterate their previous statement of December 18, 2018, that both countries recognize the strong links between promoting the development and economic growth in southern Mexico and the success of promoting prosperity, good governance and security in Central America. The United States and Mexico welcome the Comprehensive Development Plan launched by the Government of Mexico in concert with the Governments of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to promote these goals. The United States and Mexico will lead in working with regional and international partners to build a more prosperous and secure Central America to address the underlying causes of migration so that citizens of the region can build better lives for themselves and their families at home.

Source

Senator Cory Gardner is making marijuana reform a reality

Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) said on Wednesday that he has “pretty good confidence” that Congress will pass far-reaching marijuana reforms this year, citing conversations he’s had with key committee chairs and President Donald Trump.

Gardner, who is the lead GOP sponsor of separate bills to let cannabis businesses access banking services and to protect states that have legalized from federal interference, said bipartisan support for his legislation “sends a strong signal that it’s time to pull the federal government’s head out of the sand on marijuana and actually address” the issue.

“It’s a sign that it’s no longer acceptable for the status quo [to continue] and we need to actually fix this conflict in federal and state law,” he said.

The senator revealed that he’s had “a number of good conversations” with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, as well as “some of the others in key committees like the Banking Committee.”

“I actually have some pretty good confidence that we can move forward on a solution this year,” Gardner told Yahoo Finance. “I think the consistent drumbeat of businesses and organizations and individuals going in to share their story with Chairman Graham and others has really made a key difference in terms of how we’re going to pass legislation to actually fix this conflict.”

Yahoo Finance
✔
@YahooFinance
Highlight: "It’s time to pull Congress's head out of the sand, the federal government’s head out of the sand on marijuana…" says @SenCoryGardner on bipartisan lawmakers teaming up to reform marijuana laws. https://finance.yahoo.com/

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11:04 AM - Jun 5, 2019

Of course, cannabis reform legislation would also have to be signed by Trump, who Gardner said he considers an ally on the issue.

“I think the president would look at it as a commonsense approach that helps him out as well,” he said in response to a question about whether passing the bill he is co-leading with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) could aid her presidential campaign as she seeks to oust the incumbent occupant of the Oval Office. “He’s been supportive of this approach from the get-go. The conversations I have had with him over the past year-plus have been very productive.”

“I think that this is something he understands needs to be done because of the number of states—47 states have now moved forward—and to use his term, we’re not going to go backwards on this. Let’s fix the problem,” he added.

While Trump has not been particularly vocal about the issue since being elected, he did say last year that he “really” supports legislation to let states set their own marijuana policies without federal intervention when asked by a reporter.

Meanwhile, a number of political observers have pointed out that bringing home a federal cannabis win of some kind or another to Colorado could go a long way toward aiding Gardner’s own bid to be reelected next year.

Source

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Key bipartisan lawmakers say they are confident Congress will move on legislation designed to free cannabis businesses from the risk of breaking federal laws.

“I actually have some pretty good confidence that we can move forward on a solution this year,” Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) told Yahoo Finance about the Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States Act (“STATES Act”), a bill he co-sponsored with Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and one of several bills introduced in Congress to address concerns that plant-touching transactions could run afoul of the Controlled Substances Act and U.S. banking regulations.

If passed, the STATES Act would prevent federal authorities from punishing state-compliant cannabis businesses that would otherwise face criminal prosecution for possessing and distributing marijuana, which remains designated as a schedule 1 narcotic.

“I think the consistent drumbeat of businesses and organizations and individuals going in to share their story with Chairman [Lindsey] Graham, and others, has really made a key difference in terms of how we’re going to actually pass legislation to fix this conflict,” Gardner said.

‘An invitation to money laundering’

A lead Republican sponsor for another bipartisan, and a more narrowly-tailored bill that would protect banks from cannabis-related penalties, the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act (“SAFE Act”), Gardner reintroduced the measure in the Senate in April with Democratic co-sponsor Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR).

“This broader bill, I support it,” Merkley told Yahoo Finance. “Sen. Cory Gardner from Colorado has done a good job leading that effort. But sometimes the broader the bill gets, the less support it has. So we’re trying to find both the policy path and the political path forward.”

Persuading lawmakers to vote yes on a policy that would undo decades of drug regulation takes time, Merkley said. It’s why he believes the SAFE Act may be getting more traction.

“It’s caught in the evolution of thinking about cannabis,” Merkley said. “We now have more than half of our states ... that really understand that this cash economy makes no sense. It means that you have hundreds of thousands of dollars, millions of dollars moving around in duffel bags, in backpacks. It’s an invitation to money laundering, to organized crime to petty theft, to not even paying your taxes accurately.”

Merkley said the Senate version of the SAFE Act had gained 31 sponsors and was gradually building steam. Its companion bill in the House passed out of committee in March. “We’re expecting positive action on the floor,” Merkley said.

Questions remain about whether hemp, a form of cannabis with non-psychoactive levels of THC, needs to be explicitly covered in the various bills, despite its legalization under the 2018 Farm Bill. Hemp contains another phytocannabinoid, CBD, suspected to have therapeutic benefits.

“We’re pushing the FDA to act quickly because that’s really the hang-up now,” Merkley said. “Some states are a little nervous — what is this CBD oil? And does have something to do with marijuana? And can we intercept it? And the answer is no. This is now a full, agricultural product but it needs to have the FDA put out regulations that pertain to labeling and shipping, just to give everyone, to get the message, if you will, that this is now a legal, agricultural commodity.”

Representatives Ed Perlmutter (D-CO), Denny Heck (D-WA), Steve Stivers (R-OH) and Warren Davidson (R-OH) introduced the House version of the SAFE Act. On Wednesday, the House Financial Services Committee issued a report on the legislation. The bill was discharged by the House Judiciary Committee, and placed on the Union Calendar, indicating it may come to a floor vote sooner than expected.

Source

You can make a difference too by petitioning the government to pass and implement these reforms right away. To do so click on the take action banner.

Boycott Heineken beer

Fuck Heineken. If Heineken has a problem with American values then some of us Americans have a problem with Heineken. I've always thought of Heineken as a good quality import. There have been times where my purchase of Heineken has made my wallet cry. However, a financial sacrifice is different than a Constitutional sacrifice. A Constitutional sacrifice is never acceptable which is why I am calling for a boycott on Heineken. Until Heineken shares our values we will boycott their beer. Let them know why you are boycotting them by clicking here.

Some more on AOC

Way to go,AOC

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) pressed the head of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) about policies that cause public housing residents and their families to be evicted for committing low-level offenses such as marijuana possession on Tuesday.

During a hearing before the House Financial Services Committee, the congresswoman first quoted HUD Secretary Ben Carson from a 2017 speech where he acknowledged that the war on drugs has disproportionately impacted minority communities.

“Do you acknowledge that the war on drugs disproportionately impacted black communities and communities of color despite marijuana and other drug use levels being comparable to white communities?” she asked the secretary for the record.

“Traditionally that has been the case,” Carson replied.



CSPAN
✔
@cspan
.@RepAOC @AOC asks about One Strike Rule and No-Fault Policy and if Secretary Carson would support moving the policies over to a more holistic/case-by-case review.

@SecretaryCasron: "I'm always in favor of more flexibility."

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9:45 AM - May 21, 2019
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Ocasio-Cortez went on to say that she was concerned that “the negative impact of the war on drugs has not been limited to incarceration” and that “we had legislative rippling effect that also seems to have been codified in our housing system”

She pointed to two specific HUD policies: the “one strike” rule, which allows property managers to evict people living in federally assisted housing if they engage in illicit drug use or other crimes, and the “no fault” rule, which stipulates that public housing residents can be evicted due to illicit drug use by other members of their household or guests—even if the resident was unaware of the activity.

Carson said that property owners in individual jurisdictions have discretion when it comes to enforcing the policy, but he conceded that these rules are in effect under federal law.

“So a person could be stop and frisked and be found in possession of a small amount of marijuana and then be evicted or have their entire family evicted from public housing?” Ocasio-Cortez asked.

“That is a possibility,” Carson said.

Fair Chance at Housing Act

The congresswoman then asked if Carson was aware of the “no fault” rule, to which he replied that the “use of such activity is extremely limited, if ever used.” Ocasio-Cortez responded by stating that the policies “are still codified in federal law” and asked whether the official supports “reversing some of these provisions” such as the “no fault” rule.

Carson said he was willing to talk about individual cases, and the congresswoman followed up by noting that there’s a lack of holistic review for these cases. Given Carson’s interest in hearing details about individual cases, she wondered if he’d “support being able to move some of these policies to a more holistic review.”

“Should that case-by-case consideration be codified in federal law instead of having blanket, one-strike or no fault policies?” she asked.

“I’m always in favor of more flexibility,” he said, signaling that he’d be open to reforming some of the anti-drug policies in effect federally at HUD.

Should Carson decline to take action, legislation introduced by Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) in April would protect public housing residents who use marijuana in compliance with state law from being evicted.

Ocasio-Cortez herself has filed a bill that would prevent public housing applicants from being denied due to a low-level drug conviction that resulted in a sentence of under ten years and prohibit drug testing of applicants “as a condition of such housing assistance,” among other reforms.

Source

AOC is right in that the evictions she is describing are codified into federal law. That has to change. If not we are subject to political winds and winds change course. If that were to happen that would be very devastating. Contrary to what people think most housing is for law abiding people. Some may be disabled while others are employed. Yes,there are housing for those out of prison unfortunately housing for ex-cons and/or illegal aliens are the ones the media loves to focus on.

The Mueller Report

Trump is guilty

President Donald John Trump has violated numerous decrees from the deep state (Royal Deep State Decrees). Willfully denying Hillary her coronation is a criminal act according to the RDS. He then colluded with an group that the Deep State despises called "the American people" to act as his co conspirators in denying Queen Hillary I the presidency. Since he did not get out of Hillary's way and kiss her ass he is guilty of obstruction according to RDS standards.

The dinosaur and the little crying girl

Nancy Pelosi

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
On Monday House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 79, took yet another shot at socialist congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 29, over the young congresswoman’s increasingly radical agenda.

Speaking during an on-stage interview at the London School of Economics and Political Science, the Democrat Party’s veritable matriarch reminded the audience that politics “is about winning,” and to win the party must temper its positions to appeal to America’s mostly moderate population.

“What we’re saying is to have a message that appeals to people in a way that does not menace them — that really does address their concerns,” she said. “When we win and we have the White House and we have that, then we can expand our exuberances to some other things.”

Her point appeared to be that Democrats need to focus their agenda on sensible ideas and solutions for the time being instead of pushing radical plans like AOC’s “Green New Deal.” Why? Because most districts aren’t as far-left as either hers or that of the socialist congresswoman.

“When we won this election, it wasn’t in districts like mine or Alexandria’s,” Pelosi explained, referring to the 2018 midterms. “She’s a wonderful member of Congress, as I think all of our colleagues will attest, but those are districts that are solidly Democratic.”

To drive home the point, she picked up a glass of water and stated, “This glass of water would win with a ‘D’ next to its name in those districts. … Not to diminish the personality and the exuberance of the rest of Alexandria and the members, but …”

The House speaker’s direct but gentle jab at Ocasio-Cortez marked the third time in less than seven days that she’d chided her younger peer and dismissed her alleged influence on the party.

In a “60 Minutes” interview over the weekend, she pushed back against concerns by host Lesley Stahl that AOC’s radical wing of the party is slowly but surely taking over.

“So you are contending with a group in Congress: Over here on the left flank are these self-described socialists, on the right, these moderates,” Stahl said. “And you yourself said that you’re the only one who can unify everybody. And the question is, can you?”

“By and large, whatever orientation they came to Congress with, they know that we have to hold the center,” Pelosi replied. “That we have to go down the mainstream.”

“You have these wings — AOC, and her group on one side …, ” the host pressed later in the interview.

“That’s like five people,” the House speaker snapped back.

Now flash back to April 8. During an interview at the time with USA Today, the House speaker took her first shot at Ocasio-Cortez. Unlike the two shots that would follow afterward, however, this one was designed to be stealthy, in that Pelosi didn’t mention AOC by name.

“While there are people who have a large number of Twitter followers, what’s important is that we have large numbers of votes on the floor of the House,” she said when asked about the difficulties of pushing a moderate agenda while dealing with the background noise of radicals.

The underlying theme that seemed to be present in all three attacks was that Ocasio-Cortez is a relative nobody who, despite her social media following and incessant media spotlight, allegedly isn’t driving the Democrat Party’s agenda, and for good reason: Because politics is about winning.

Of course, this doesn’t mean AOC isn’t entitled to a little play time at the kid’s table.

“It doesn’t mean we curb those enthusiasms. Reach for the moon. Put out there what you want, go for it, talk about it,” Pelosi said at her London School of Economics and Political interview.

“But when we have to go into the districts that we have to win, we have to cull that with which we have most in common with these people,” she added.

The point was that while it’s OK for AOC to have her fun and her Twitter followers and her radical little ideas, the party’s overall focus can’t be on her and her childish agenda.

“This is about winning. This is about winning because so much is at stake,” Pelosi concluded.

Though Pelosi was clearly loathe to admit it Monday, the fact remains that Ocasio-Cortez and her freshmen peers, including anti-Semitic Muslim Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib continue to have an effect on the American people’s perception of the Democrat Party.

As of Tuesday, for instance, one of the top stories regarding congressional Democrats was still the dismissive way in which Omar had recently spoken about the Sept. 11 attacks.

The other top story was AOC’s decision to quit Facebook …

Observe:


CNN
✔
@CNN
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is one of the most prolific and powerful politicians on social media, with millions of followers who hang on her every post and tweet. She's said goodbye to Facebook, though. https://cnn.it/2UFMJlm pic.twitter.com/u5v6bdS2cG

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7:00 PM - Apr 15, 2019
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New York Daily News
✔
@NYDailyNews
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez revealed she had completely stopped using her Facebook account and is scaling back on social media use in general, arguing online platforms can cause “isolation, depression, anxiety, addiction, escapism.”https://trib.al/eqbqBDU

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12:39 PM - Apr 15, 2019
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FORTUNE
✔
@FortuneMagazine
.@AOC is done with Facebook http://bit.ly/2KK5Iqq

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3:30 AM - Apr 16, 2019
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ABC News
✔
@ABC
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says there are health risks associated with Facebook—and that's why she's decided to stop using her account. https://abcn.ws/2UANZq1 pic.twitter.com/mMJi18YuPi

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8:12 PM - Apr 15, 2019
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Daily Mail US
✔
@DailyMail
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez announces she is quitting Facebook because it is a ‘public health risk’ https://trib.al/i1plBsP

16
1:58 AM - Apr 16, 2019
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The Hill
✔
@thehill
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez explains why she quit Facebook http://hill.cm/azkRVlj pic.twitter.com/L4DTKQB6jQ

USA TODAY
✔
@USATODAY
Many young Americans have stopped using Facebook in the numbers they used to, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Yahoo News
✔
@YahooNews
Rep. @AOC, who personally gave up Facebook, says "social media poses a public health risk to everybody."

“I've started to kind of impose little rules on myself..."

Once again the world’s attention seems to be focused on AOC, and again it seems there’s not much Pelosi can do about it.

Source

Joe Biden Applauds Anti-Marijuana Speech At Opioid Forum

As former Vice President Joe Biden mulls a 2020 presidential run, marijuana reform advocates are following closely to see if the long-running drug warrior is going to change his tune. But at a forum on the opioid epidemic on Thursday, that didn’t seem to be the case.

When the mayor of Philadelphia asked the panel at the University of Pennsylvania event about whether cannabis can be used as an alternative to opioids, psychobiology professor Bertha Madras claimed that patients who consume marijuana experience the same levels of pain and don’t decrease their opioid use, and she also characterized legislative efforts to allow patients with opioid use disorder to access medical marijuana as “disrespectful”—a rant that Biden enthusiastically applauded.

“At this point there are two conclusions. Number one, the data does not show that cannabis is a substitute, because if you actually do longitudinal studies on an individual basis, you find that people are suffering as much pain if they’re taking marijuana, and their opioid use is not decreasing in most cases,” Madras, who served as the deputy director of demand reduction for the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, argued. “In fact, they’re getting more and more in trouble, in terms of developing opioid use disorder and they’re misusing opioids.”

“Every single disease that is treated in this country—like diabetes, like infections, like cancer—is evidence-based and undergoes randomized controlled clinical trials,” she continued. “And to say that this is by legislative support or by fiat from a governor’s office, that this is how you can treat opioid use disorder without the clinical trials, without longitudinal studies, to me is purely disrespectful of patients.”

There are numerous studies that raise questions about the doctor’s broad dismissal of the notion that cannabis can substitute opioids, but Biden seemed satisfied. He applauded the doctor and later seemed to tell the guest next to him that “she’s right.”

The tacit endorsement of the panelist’s anti-cannabis speech appears to signal that Biden—who as a senator championed the enactment of harsh, punitive drug laws—remains opposed, or at least skeptical about, changing marijuana policies. That will put him at odds with every other major Democratic candidate currently in the race—all of whom have backed legalization for both medical and adult use.

Also at the forum, Biden commented on the addictiveness of opioid-based painkillers and said that “a little pain is not bad,” a remark that could be interpreted as insulting to pain patients, who have increasingly faced stigmatization and scrutiny as they’ve sought relief amidst the opioid crisis.


Matt Viser
✔
@mviser
Joe Biden, asked what one thing he wishes people knew, says people should recognize how addictive pain killers are. "A little pain is not bad," he says.

It’s unclear how seriously Biden is weighing a 2020 run at this stage, with many speaking out about his history of touching women in ways that made them feel uncomfortable. But if he does take the plunge, drug policy will undoubtedly be a sticking point for many voters.

The current field of Democratic candidates is already competing to go beyond simply supporting legalization and either musing broader decriminalization of other drugs or, in the case of Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), insisting that support for ending prohibition is contingent on the inclusion of social equity provisions to repair the damages of the war on drugs, which has been carried out in a racially disproportionate manner.

As far as Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) is concerned, the U.S. will never have another “anti-cannabis’ president. Asked specifically about Biden’s prospects, the congressman told Marijuana Moment in a recent interview that nobody “is going to survive the nominating process who doesn’t have a reasonable position on cannabis.”

“They will not be nominated. I say that unequivocally,” Blumenauer said.

Source

The politicization of cannabis legalization

The pro-legalization of cannabis nationwide is gathering momentum.That is great. What is not-so-great is the left wing politics that are permeating the movement. Specifically in this case racism. Race is a bad indicator to go on because not every black or brown person is cited for marijuana possession. Not only that but Caucasians,specifically men who are cited,will go uncounted due to race and especially gender. The best way the powers that be can make this up is to expunge convictions and overturn ridiculous judgements (being barred from the marijuana industry by judges due to prohibition and other ridiculous conditions.) Regardless of race and/or gender. Also allow market forces dictate the supply and demand when it comes to cannabis,ease up on taxing it to death.

The estate of Big Daddy founder sues Bruce Springsteen for copyright infringement.

Big Daddy founder Big Daddy Ding Dong
The estate of Big Daddy founder Big Daddy Ding Dong has filed suit against Bruce Springsteen for copyright infringement in the court building downtown. Springsteen denies this and is represented by the law firm Crosby,Stills,Nash and Young. More to come. Stay tuned.

FDA is seeking the public's input on marijuana rescheduling

In the last few days, nearly 700 people have submitted comments to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) supporting the rescheduling of marijuana.

The FDA opened the public comment period on Friday to gather input ahead of a United Nations meeting on global drug policy, where the U.S. representative will have the opportunity to cast a vote on World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations to reschedule cannabis, THC and CBD under international drug treaties.

So far, the federal agency has been flooded with comments that overwhelmingly endorse a cannabis reclassification. Support for the policy change has been nearly unanimous, but the reasoning behind those sentiments varied.

Dozens of submissions came from patients, many of whom complained about pharmaceuticals they’d been prescribed and felt cannabis was a more effective treatment option. One person who said he or she is a registered nurse sided with those patients and wrote “in my professional opinion, it is both harmful and unethical to prohibit patients access to this medicinal plant.”

Others pointed out that marijuana is not as harmful as other legal substances like alcohol and tobacco. Several people argued that prohibition is an infringement on civil liberties.

Military veterans were also strongly represented in the comments, with some saying cannabis has helped treat conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic pain.

“I am a 59 y/o military veteran. I know first hand how effective a pain reliever cannabis can be,” one person wrote. “It is my strong opinion cannabis should be legal and regulated.”

Some brought a political angle to their comment. A self-described straight ticket Republican voter said he voted for Donald Trump in the last election, but that he will “endorse the next candidate who supports marijuana legalization.” Another person suggested that the president should legalize cannabis to troll liberals, delivering on an issue that is increasingly popular on a bipartisan basis.

“It’s draconian that you’re allowing states to arrest and charge people with felonies for a product that’s readily available in stores in other states,” someone wrote. “It also makes the federal government look completely inept because states have fully legalized starting in 2012. It’s been nearly a decade and there’s yet to be any sort of federal action.”

One of the only comments expressing opposition to loosening marijuana laws under international treaties relied on stoner stereotypes: “Cannabis makes you Dumb, Lazy, & Hungry !”

Taken as a whole, though, it’s clear that the public wants the U.S. to back marijuana reform when the issue comes up for a vote, which could happen later this month but might be delayed until a later UN meeting.

If adopted, the WHO recommendations wouldn’t change U.S. law—which classifies marijuana under the most restrictive category of Schedule I—or allow UN member states to legalize the sale of cannabis without violating international treaties. But approving WHO’s recommended changes would likely embolden more countries follow in the footsteps of Canada and Uruguay, which have legalized marijuana regardless of UN policy.

Expect more comments to flow in as the deadline, March 14, approaches. The last time the FDA solicited public input on cannabis rescheduling, more than 20,000 people made their voices heard.

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Meet the new boss same as the old boss

The word "exploitation" is thrown around a lot in our society. Exploitation of the workers,of the masses,of various groups. One form of exploitation is when older people entice the younger generation to be their foot soldiers. To do their dirty work for them. We've seen this in the '70's with the establishment exploiting young men through the draft to kill or be killed in the Viet Nam War. A lot of young men also noticed it and brought it forefront for the American people to understand it and combat it. Today it is a different establishment playing the role of puppet master but they are yielding the same bloody results. Back then it was big business tycoons and other corporate elites that were pulling the strings. Pulling the strings in favor of them and their stockholders. Today it is college and university professors and other left wing members of the faculty that are the exploiters. It is very easy to accomplish now that the unions control the educational system and how the left owns the unions. What passes for "education" these days is a mockery of the word and definition. I would use the term "indoctrinate". This indoctrination doesn't start on the first day of their college classes. It starts on the first day of their kindergarten class. From K-12 and beyond the left has brainwashed your children. The left is also creating an army of their own. Of ruthless thugs that use Stalinistic methods of terror to achieve their goals. Their army is called "antifa". They pride themselves on being "anti-fascists". They can take pride in knowing they are just as vicious as those they claim to hate. If not more so. In the U.S. military honor and respect for the law are prized. With antifa they are despised. With the U.S. military the United States Constitution and the American Revolution are the guiding principles. With antifa Das Kapital and the communist revolution are the only things that matter. We've seen that evil intent,regardless of political affiliation,can wreck damage,perhaps extensive,throughout society. IOW the more things change the more they stay the same.

Stand up to Facebook's tyranny

From Demand Progress:

This may be the moment when we finally take back control of the internet from big corporate monopolies.

After nearly a year of scandal, Facebook is on the ropes. The Federal Trade Commission is considering serious penalties for Facebook’s violations of federal laws and court orders regarding our privacy and our data.

The FTC is considering fining Facebook as much as $1 billion.1 That may sound like a lot. But it's not. It's barely a few days' revenue for the company. And it won't produce lasting change.

We can't trust Facebook to regulate itself. There's too much at stake, and they've proven themselves to be bad faith actors over and over again.

This is a critical moment. Add your name: Tell the FTC to break up Facebook. We’ll immediately send your message to all five FTC commissioners.

Facebook owns many other social media apps -- including Instagram and WhatsApp. As long as Facebook has a near monopoly on the way we connect with each other, they will be able to get away with privacy violations, because we’d have nowhere else to go.

Facebook's monopoly led the British Parliament this week to call the company "digital gangsters" for their repeated violations of the law and of users' rights. They also pointed out that Facebook's dominant market position is a serious problem and has to be addressed.2

Facebook has repeatedly sold out users' privacy for shareholder profit, and will keep doing so until they’re broken up.

Sign the petition: It's time to tell the FTC to break up Facebook.

Parliament concluded that the Cambridge Analytica scandal could have been prevented, but Facebook's own internal policies allowed the massive personal data breach to continue unchecked.3 Cambridge Analytica harvested millions of Facebook users' personal data without their permission, in order to build psychological profiles to target users with political disinformation.

Their report also found that Facebook's monopoly on online ads is destroying the media and leading to mass layoffs of journalists.4

That's just the tip of the iceberg. The damage Facebook has done is massive. They even knowingly did things like let kids run up huge credit card bills and refused to issue refunds to parents.5

The FTC is debating what to do about Facebook right now. They can't let Facebook off with a fine. Even a big fine won't be enough to change their behavior. As long as Facebook has a near-monopoly on social media, they won’t have any incentive to change.

Tell the FTC that Facebook is too big to regulate itself. It's time to break it up.

Thanks for taking action,

Robert and the team at Demand Progress

1. Washington Post, "The U.S. government and Facebook are negotiating a record, multibillion-dollar fine for the company’s privacy lapses,"
2.The Guardian, "Facebook labelled 'digital gangsters' by report on fake news,"
3.Ibid.
4.Ibid.
5.The Guardian, "Facebook let children run up huge bills, court papers show,"

Hold Robert Mueller accountable

The First Marijuana Hearing Of The New Congress Has Been Scheduled

Congressional Democrats are already moving ahead with plans to consider broad changes to federal marijuana laws in 2019.

Whereas the Republican-controlled House for the past several years had blocked votes on most cannabis-related measures, the chamber's new Democratic majority on Wednesday announced it has scheduled a hearing for next week to examine the difficulties that marijuana businesses face in opening and maintaining bank accounts.

Titled, “Challenges and Solutions: Access to Banking Services for Cannabis-Related Businesses,” the hearing will take place on February 13 before a subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee.

Although a growing number of states are moving to legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use, cannabis remains federally prohibited. As a result, and despite a 2014 guidance memo released on the topic by the Obama administration aimed at clearing up the issue, many financial services providers remain reluctant to work with the industry out of fear of violating money laundering or drug laws.

"When we introduced this bill six years ago, we warned that forcing these businesses to deal in cash was threatening public safety. No hearing was given," Rep. Denny Heck (D-WA) said in an email, referring to marijuana banking legislation he and Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) have filed for the past several Congresses.

He lamented that Republican leadership didn't schedule a hearing on the proposal even after a security guard at a Colorado dispensary was killed during a robbery.

"Chairwoman Waters has made it one of her first priorities to address this urgent and overdue issue, demonstrating that she understands the threat to public safety and the need for Congress to act," Heck said of the committee's new leader. "We have a bipartisan proposal to allow well-regulated marijuana businesses to handle their money in a way that is safe and effective for law enforcement to track. I am eager to get to the work of refining it and passing it into law."

That a hearing on the issue was in the works was first noted earlier this week by Politico, and Marijuana Moment reported that the full committee is also actively planning to vote on a marijuana banking bill in the coming months.

The newly scheduled marijuana hearing is a signal that Democrats intend to move cannabis legislation this year, and is likely to be the first in a series of committee-level actions across the House on the issue.

"The upcoming hearing presents a real opportunity for the Democratic Party to assert their leadership by finally beginning the conversation on how we end the failed policy of marijuana criminalization," Justin Strekal, political director for NORML, said.

While two limited medical cannabis research bills were able to advance out of House committees last year, they never made it to the floor for votes. Meanwhile, Republican leaders consistently prevented members from offering marijuana-related amendments—including ones on banking issues—to larger legislation.

In contrast, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) suggested in a memo to party leaders late last year that they pursue a step-by-step approach to legalize marijuana in 2019. His plan recommends that Financial Services and other committees first begin holding hearings on incremental reforms like banking access, research expansion and medical cannabis for military veterans before passing bills on those issues as part of a lead up to ultimately approving broader legislation to formally end federal marijuana prohibition by the end of the year.

A House bill to protect banks from being punished for working with state-legal marijuana businesses that Heck and Perlmutter introduced garnered 95 cosponsors in the last Congress, and 20 senators signed onto a companion bill, but neither were given hearings or brought up for votes.

"Depriving state-legal cannabis businesses of basic banking services and forcing them to operate entirely in cash presents a significant safety risk, not just to those businesses and their employees, but to the public," Don Murphy, director of federal policies for the Marijuana Policy Project, said in an email. "Support for addressing the cannabis banking problem is strong and bipartisan, and it appears Congress may be ready to adopt a real, commonsense solution. Members concerned about public safety should be jumping at the chance to express their support for this legislation."

Congress has held only a handful of hearings on marijuana reform issues in recent years, and never before has any come at a time when broad cannabis reform legislation seemed to be conceivably on its way to passage.

"This hearing is historic for cannabis policy reform advocates, business owners and the banking sector, and could directly lead to the first in what is hopefully a series of positive changes in the 2019 legislative cycle," Morgan Fox, media relations director for the National Cannabis Industry Association, said in an email. "Allowing banks to work with cannabis businesses more easily will benefit public safety, increase transparency, provide more financing options for small businesses and communities that have been targeted by prohibition, and help companies thrive so they can further displace the illicit market."

Outside of the two committee markups of cannabis research legislation last year, which were not preceded by formal hearings on the relevant issues, Senate panels have on a few occasions held lengthy discussions on marijuana.

In 2013, for example, the Senate Judiciary Committee convened a hearing to dig into the fact that a growing number of states were legalizing marijuana in contrast with federal law.

The Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, which is not a formal standing committee of the body, hosted a discussion on federal marijuana enforcement in 2016. Its two cochairs, Sens. Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), have long been among Congress's most vocal opponents of cannabis reform, though Feinstein began to shift her position last year.

Also in 2016, the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism held a hearing on the risks and potential benefits of medical cannabis, but it did not lead to votes on any marijuana legislation.

Meanwhile, pressure to address cannabis banking has been growing. Several top Trump administration officials have indicated they support clarifying the issue.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, for example, suggested in testimony before a House committee early last year that he supports letting marijuana businesses store their profits in banks.

“I assure you that we don’t want bags of cash,” he said. “We do want to find a solution to make sure that businesses that have large access to cash have a way to get them into a depository institution for it to be safe.”

In a separate hearing Mnuchin revealed that addressing the issue is at the “top of the list” of his concerns.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the growing gap between state and federal marijuana laws “puts federally chartered banks in a very difficult situation... It would great if that could be clarified."

And last month, Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting called on Congress to "act at the national level to legalize marijuana if they want those entities involved in that business to utilize the U.S. banking system."

Meanwhile, although many major financial institutions are staying away from the cannabis industry, federal data does show that an increasing number of banks are beginning to work with marijuana growers, sellers, processors and related businesses.

It hasn't yet been announced who will be testifying at next week's cannabis banking hearing before the Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions Subcommittee.

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