A study looked into the supposed risk between liver transplants and marijuana users, an issue that has long prevented these people from getting the organs they need.
Despite the fact that large percentages of the US population are cannabis users, they’re often excluded from receiving liver transplants. This procedure is one that saves lives, and showcases an instance in which cannabis users are discriminated against.
Scientists and experts have historically had concerns regarding cannabis’s role in the body. In the case of liver transplants, there’s a concern that cannabis might create a bigger risk for infections.
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A new study tried to understand why liver transplants and marijuana remains a topic of concern. Published earlier this month in the American Journal of the Medical Sciences, the study surveyed different data in order to paint a picture of the risks of marijuana users who have managed to receive liver transplants.
Researchers analyzed the data from 111 patients who were also marijuana users. Only 32 of them received a liver transplant. Researchers compared the marijuana users who received a liver transplant with non-users who received the same procedure and found no statistical difference between the two.
Salon explains that fungal infections are often a concern when talking about liver transplants, especially in the case of Aspergillus, a fungus that’s also present in the cannabis plant. “The fear is that by ingesting a cannabis product contaminated by Aspergillus, it would complicate the transplant, resulting in failure or death.”
The study analyzed all possible factors and disproved these claims. “Our data indicates that marijuana is not associated with increased risk of postoperative noncompliance, other organ complications, infections, or death,” conclude the researchers. “As a single factor, marijuana may not need to be a contraindication for LT.”
While the study was small, it shows some of the ways in which the law and science discriminate against marijuana consumers, even when vouching for the user’s health. The data demonstrates how important it is for scientists to study the plant fully, especially now, as it gains popularity and is legalized across the country.
The state’s DOH said that they have “never” approved medical marijuana treatment out of Circle K gas stations.
Last week, Circle K made headlines when they shared their plans to sell marijuana out of their gas stations. This week, Florida’s health department is slowing things down.
The Washington Examiner spoke with the state’s Health Department, which made it clear that the partnership between Circle K and Green Thumb Industries has yet to be approved.
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“This project has not been approved by the State,” the department said. “Florida has never approved a Medical Marijuana Treatment Center to operate out of a gas station.”
Last week, Green Thumb shared a press release where they discussed their plans for expansion and their new partnership with Circle K, a convenience store chain headquartered in Canada.
Per the press release, Green Thumb’s marijuana brand, RISE dispensaries, would expand its medical access in Florida. “Starting in 2023, Green Thumb plans to launch its test and learn phase of the rollout with approximately ten “RISE Express” branded dispensaries adjacent to Circle K stores in various Florida locations,” reads the release. While the marijuana sales wouldn’t be operating out of the gas station, it’s the next best thing.
“The opening of RISE Express stores at Circle K locations is a game-changer. Convenience is a strong channel in retail, and people want more access to cannabis,” said Ben Kovler, founder of Green Thumb. “The new RISE Express model is a huge step forward in making it easier and more efficient for patients to purchase high-quality cannabis as part of their everyday routine when stopping by their local convenience store.”
This isn’t the first time Circle K has incorporated cannabis in its business plans. In Canada, its parent company launched a partnership with the marijuana retailer Fire & Flower, launching pick-up spots in various locations.
While Circle K’s marijuana plans may be on hold, the excitement that surrounds the issue is not. This pressure will likely move things along and stir plenty of conversation.
“Consumers are willing to pay more for cannabis products with higher THC content, and expect to pay less for cannabis products with lower THC content,” said the plaintiffs’ attorney.
A cannabis company from California is facing a lawsuit from two disgruntled users. The suit filed by plaintiffs Jasper Centeno and Blake Wilson claims DreamFields mislabeled their products, and ultimately overcharged customers.
The complaint alleges that DreamFields Inc. and Med for America Inc. violated the consumer protection laws of California, including California’s Unfair Competition Law and False Advertising Law, among other violations.
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DreamFields is one of the most popular cannabis brands in California, one that prides itself on selling pre-rolls that have higher than average THC.
But an independent lab test discovered that this wasn’t the case and that DreamFields Jeeter pre-rolls had less THC than they claimed. The packaging of the pre-rolls states that each joint had 46% of cannabis. The third-party test found that the joints had 23% and 27% percent of THC.
The lawsuit also cites an article from Weed Week, which tested the premium cannabis pre-roll brands in California. Among them were Jeeter pre-rolls, which all tested lower THC levels than advertised.
Weed Week found that this problem goes beyond DreamFields. The study found that potency inflation was “close to ubiquitous” in all the brands that were tested.
In a statement, the plaintiff’s attorney, Christin Cho, argued that joint prices are based on THC levels. “Consumers are willing to pay more for cannabis products with higher THC content, and expect to pay less for cannabis products with lower THC content.”
This thought process is also echoed by Weed Week, which explains that in a market as competitive as California, THC levels drive up sales and are the reason why many people choose one brand over the other.
The cannabis plant is made up of various parts, with all of them capable of impacting your high. While THC levels may determine how blasted you get, a variety of elements such as the plant’s terpenes, can determine how much fun you’ll have.
In August, Arkansas state officials announced that a proposed ballot measure to legalize recreational cannabis received enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot.
However, the State Board of Election Commissioners then proceeded to turn down the initiative from Responsible Growth Arkansas. The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled in September that voters can decide whether to legalize recreational cannabis, after all, overturning a decision by the Board of Election Commissioners.
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While support among Arkansans was substantial initially despite powerful opposition from the state’s governor and conservative officials who attempt to convince voters to say ‘NO’ to the cannabis legalization initiative, as midterms approach, the sentiment is changing.
A new survey by Talk Business & Politics-Hendrix College revealed that support has dropped, with roughly 51% of those asked saying they support the cannabis measure. On the contrary, the number of those who are against it is on the rise, as evidenced by 37% of poll participants who said they oppose the cannabis policy reform, reported Marijuana Moment.
Meanwhile, in addition to Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) and U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and John Boozman (R-AR), who are tireless in urging voters to vote against the legalization measure, David Couch, the attorney behind the state’s medical marijuana amendment, is working to defeat recreational cannabis legalization efforts as well.
Jerry Cox, executive director of the church-based Family Council Action Committee recently revealed that the committee has distributed roughly a half-million flyers undermining the efforts of marijuana activists. Couch is currently touring the state and meeting with church groups, chambers of commerce, as well as other groups and organizations that are against the proposed marijuana policy change.
Seasoned cannabis growers know that seaweed is perhaps the best way to increase crop growth and boost the health of marijuana plants.
Seaweed is one of the healthiest and tastiest ingredients used in cuisines around the world. It’s a potent source of many nutrients, including iodine, B vitamins, vitamin K, iron, zinc, and even antioxidants; all of these offer tremendous health benefits for us. But did you know that seaweed is a potent superfood for your marijuana plants too?
In fact, seaweed has been used for agricultural purposes for centuries now. Since ancient times, people have been using seaweed to fertilize the soil and even make infertile soil, fertile. Research into the use of seaweed (as well as kelp) has boomed in modern times, proving the efficacy and usefulness of this humble weed to strengthen the growth of many crops, including marijuana.
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What Is Kelp and Seaweed?
Seaweed, also known as macroalgae or algae, is an umbrella term that refers to thousands of species of plants that grow in water. They can be found in different bodies of water including the ocean, lakes, and even rivers. Some species are microscopic and thus can’t be seen with the human eye, but they still serve an important purpose in marine ecosystems by supporting the food chain.
Kelp is a popular type of seaweed. It’s a large kind of seaweed that commonly grows in sea forests. Many seaweed fertilizers are made from kelp or a combination of other seaweeds.
Seaweeds do not contain internal vessels that transport nutrients around them. Because of this, they are able to absorb everything from the water directly, which is why they need to stay in water in order to survive.
Benefits of Using Seaweed Fertilizers
While there are many tried and tested ways to grow healthy marijuana plants, adding seaweed fertilizer to the mix can make it even better. It’s certainly a much better alternative to conventional fertilizers, and it can help your plants thrive despite being exposed to environmental stress including disease, pests, salinity, and drought.
Seaweed is considered a biostimulant for cannabis and other plants. Biostimulants refer to natural products, not limited to fertilizer, which can help promote the growth of plants when given in small quantities. In agriculture, biostimulants have been used to assist with responsible and sustainable agriculture.
Here’s why you should be adding seaweed as a superfood fertilizer for your cannabis plants:
Excellent nutrition: When seaweed grows in bodies of water, it absorbs many macronutrients, micronutrients, and minerals that it passes on to plants. No other fertilizer can match the nutrition profile of seaweed!
On top of the nutrients mentioned above, it also contains potassium, calcium, magnesium, boron, phytohormones, and fatty acids. When marijuana plants absorb these through fertilizer used, it gives them a serious nutrition boost that helps them grow and tolerate stress efficiently.
Improves moisture: When you add dry seaweed to the topsoil of cannabis in the same way you do with mulching, it’s an effective way to trap moisture within the soil. As a result, you will need to water less but you can have peace of mind that the cannabis roots are thriving.
Germination: Apply seaweed to marijuana plants will promote germination of seeds while also helping regulate the pH levels in the soil. In addition, it will improve marijuana metabolism when it increases the trace minerals within the soil so that the plants and roots can easily absorb the nutrients.
Fights bacteria: Using seaweed fertilizer provides excellent defense against microbes such as bacteria, parasites, and fungi. All of these are detrimental to the growth of any plant including cannabis, so you want to keep them away as much as possible while stimulating the growth of healthy bacteria within the soil.
Photo by Cappi Thompson/Getty Images
How to Use Seaweed as Cannabis Fertilizer
There are many different kinds of seaweed fertilizers already available in the market:
Liquid: Liquid seaweed extracts will likely need to be diluted, but to be sure, check the manufacturer’s guidelines. The dilution ratio will vary from one product to another though it is always best to check because you don’t want to risk overfeeding marijuana plants. Underfeeding is less risky than overfeeding.
Powder: Feeding your plants with a seaweed foliar spray offers numerous benefits. Just add around ½ teaspoon of powder for every 5 liters of water. You only need a small amount to feed the cannabis leaves.
Meal: Kelp meal is best added directly to the soil four months before you plant the seedlings. Doing so in advance will give the soil enough time to break the nutrients down, so that it’s efficiently absorbed by the soil. The typical volume for kelp meal is around 0.5kg / 9 cubic meters.
Below are ways you can use the fertilizer to improve the growth of cannabis plants:
Use seaweed to feed the roots of cannabis plants in all stages of its life cycle;
Soak seeds and cuttings in a seaweed solution;
Add kelp meal into the root zone;
Spray the foliage with seaweed extract – though this is particularly helpful when the plants begin to bloom. This should also be done during the start of the lights-on cycle;
Adding liquid extract or whole seaweed into compost together with other bio feeds;
Conclusion
Seaweed and kelp are wonderful organic fertilizers for all plants including marijuana. Seasoned cannabis growers know that seaweed is perhaps the best way to increase crop growth and boost the health of marijuana plants. Why not give it a try today?
A preliminary study found that marijuana consumers experienced more pain post-surgery, and were less affected by opioids.
A new study claims marijuana users might experience more pain following surgery. The research was presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists on Sunday, where researchers expanded on their findings and shared that marijuana users required more prescription drugs when compared to non-users.
The study was conducted with the data of more than 34,000 people who had surgery at the Cleveland Clinic. Within 30 days of surgery, over 1,700 patients had used marijuana.
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These patients required more medication in order to remain asleep during their surgery, and had different brain waves, vital signs, and breathing patterns when compared to non-users.
“It’s not an enormous amount of additional pain compared to non-users, we found, but we can’t say don’t worry about it because it’s not too much,” said Dr. Elyad Ekrami, the lead researcher of the study. “They needed more opioids to cure their pain, so this is something that is meaningful.”
The study showed that marijuana users experienced 14% more pain during their first hours after surgery. This meant that they also consumed more opioids, approximately 7% more when compared to non-users. While researchers don’t understand why marijuana is affecting people’s pain responses, they have a few theories.
Ekrami shared that marijuana is known to affect pain receptors — in the case of frequent users, this means that the drug could be desensitizing them, making them more likely to experience pain and demand opioids. They also think that marijuana users might be using the drug to treat anxiety, which could then increase their pain reactions.
Photo by Jafar Ahmed via Unsplash
Still, not enough evidence is known on the matter, making it difficult for experts to provide marijuana users with a recommendation. Dr. Shalini Shah, chief of pain medicine at the University of California, Irvine, recommends patients to be drastically honest with their doctors, sharing the drugs they take prior to surgery. “Really have a frank conversation about, ‘Hey, what are my risks? What’s the best evidence? What should I do prior to surgery so I can have a healthy recovery?'” she said.
While the results have yet to be published, the study makes it even more pressing for researchers to have the necessary permits that would allow them to test the drug fully and provide users with accurate information.
A recent Gallup poll found that cannabis use among Americans modestly surpassed cigarettes and that its future use is likely to be shaped based on future legalization efforts and new research data.
A new poll conducted by Monmouth University found that nearly 7 in 10 Americans — fully 68% — support legalizing small amounts of cannabis for personal use, compared with just 26% who oppose it.
The poll comes two weeks after President Biden issued a pardon for those convicted of simple cannabis possession on a federal level and urged governors to do the same at the state level. The president’s move, by the way, received 69% support in the Monmouth survey. At the same time as he announced the pardon, Biden said he’d ask his administration to review marijuana’s classification as a Schedule I drug, a category that includes LSD, cocaine and heroin.
The Washington Post (WAPO) noted, with an air of surprise verging on delight, that when same-sex marriage was legalized nationwide, political and social scientists saw the societal shift as remarkable, even unparalleled…until now, wrote WAPO’s Aaron Blake. He noted that “compared to 25 years ago, poll numbers regarding cannabis legalization have flipped.” A 1997 ABC News poll showed only 22% supported legalizing the possession of small amounts for personal use and three-quarters opposed it.
“You can’t find another issue where attitudes have shifted so rapidly,” a political scientist told WAPO.
Is Weed Consumption More Popular Than Alcohol And Tobacco?
A Gallup poll released in August found that cannabis use among Americans modestly surpassed cigarettes and that its future use is likely to be shaped based on future legalization efforts and new research data.
In March, the endless debate over whether weed is safer and healthier than alcohol got a shot of info via a study published in the journal Scientific Reports that suggested that marijuana is approximately 114 times less deadly than alcohol.
All of this begs a question: what are our illustrious lawmakers and honorable President waiting for?
If conditional cultivators and processors have no outlet to sell their products to the public, the risk of diversion into the legacy market increases substantially.
According to a recent article from Upstate New York, the state of New York is confronting an issue commonly faced in the state-legal cannabis industry: a lack of banking options. The New York regulators need an account for the Seeding Opportunity Initiative fund of $200M which will go to renovations and build-outs for the first waive of Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensaries (CAURD). If New York cannot find a bank, it will certainly slow down the roll out of legal cannabis sales.
New York, like many other states, will have a closed loop system for cannabis. That means that only cannabis grown and processed by licensees can be sold by a licensed entity. For the market contemplated by the Marijuana Regulation and Tax Act (MRTA) to take shape, there must be a legal way for customers to buy cannabis.
Up to this point the focus has been on establishing conditional adult-use cultivators, processors, and dispensaries. The conditional cultivators and processors, by all accounts, are up and running. So what happens in the event that conditional dispensaries are not available in the short term? Licensed conditional cultivators and processors will need to sell their products somewhere and if there is no legal way to do that those crops will go to waste or, perhaps, find their way to unregulated markets.
I have no doubt that the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) will do what they can to ensure that CAURD licenses are operating ASAP. But rumor has it that the regulators are considering other options if the CAURD licenses are not operational soon.
Photo by Anton Petrus/Getty Images
Delivery
New York’s passage of MRTA last year created a temporarily comfortable environment for legacy market operators. Although these businesses operate outside the scope of the law, they do so without much risk of criminal prosecution. Many of these legacy businesses deliver cannabis.
MRTA establishes a class of delivery license, but OCM has yet to open the application process for prospective delivery licensees. We have heard rumors that the OCM may fast track delivery licenses to deliver cannabis from conditional cultivators and processors to customers by partnering with legacy cannabis delivery services. This would take some of the pressure of off the CAURD license process. However, in order for this to happen, OCM will need to set up an application process, review applications, and grant licenses.
Winery Model
Another solution floating around would involve implementing some kind of winery model where customers can purchase cannabis directly from cultivators. This would allow producers, who are authorized to minimally process cannabis, to sell directly to consumers. However, for a winery model to work, it may take a change to the MRTA. Section 68 of MRTA grants cultivators the ability to sell to processors, not the public. The MRTA established the OCM and the OCM’s power derives solely from MRTA. While the MRTA granted the OCM and the Cannabis Control Board wide regulatory authority over New York’s cannabis industry but that does not mean that the regulators can alter what’s in the MRTA. OCM may not be able to establish a winery model for cannabis cultivators without a change in law.
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Bottom Line
The OCM and New York lawmakers want MRTA to succeed. If conditional cultivators and processors have no outlet to sell their products to the public, the risk of diversion into the legacy market increases substantially. Although New York has lessened penalties for cannabis crimes, the state surely does not want to strengthen the unregulated legacy market. Hopefully, the CAURD licenses can operate in the near future. If not, OCM may open up other pathways for cannabis distribution. We’ll keep you updated on the Green Light Law Blog.
Daniel Shortt is a corporate and regulatory attorney based in Seattle, Washington who works extensively with entrepreneurs in the cannabis industry. You can contact him at info@gl-lg.com or (206) 430-1336. This article originally appeared on Green Light Law Group and has been reposted with permission.
The FDA said THC edibles can be easily mistaken for commonly consumed foods — such as breakfast cereal, candy and cookies — and accidentally ingested, which can lead to adverse events, especially in children.
The Fresh Toast – Mother charged with murder after 4-year-old dies from THC edibles. A case everyone is watching.
Children falling ill from cannabis edibles is happening with more regularity as marijuana becomes mainstream as some adults are irresponsibly careless. And while, most of the time, kids end-up fully recovered, sometimes the things turn to real-life horror story.
Dorothy Annette Clements, a 30-year-old mother from Virginia, has been charged with murder and felony child neglect after her 4-year-old son died as a result of THC poisoning after eating his mom’s edibles, local police reported.
Clements was arrested Wednesday, two days after Spotsylvania County Grand Jury indicted her for the death of her son. Tanner Clements died on May 8 after suffering a medical emergency. The attending physician told detectives from the Child Victims Unit in charge of the case that the boy would still be alive if he’d received medical attention quickly after ingestion.
Clements told police she called poison control after her son ate half of a CBD gummy. She said representatives told her he should be fine. Doctors then confirmed that an autopsy report showed a high level of THC was the cause of death, writes NBC Washington. What’s more, detectives found an empty THC gummy jar in the house where Tanner was found.
Clements faces up to 40 years in prison on murder charges.
Poison Control warned that “serious and sometimes life-threatening side effects can occur in children who consume cannabis edibles,” which is why adults should keep these products out of reach from children.
What Should Individuals Do In Case Of Adverse Effects
The agency said it is engaged in finding the solution to this problem, constantly overseeing the market. It advises consumers to call 911 if someone is having a serious side effect from these products, to keep them out of children’s reach, and to call the local poison control center (1-800-222-1222) if a child has consumed these products without waiting for symptoms to appear.
Cannabis Copycats
More common reports about poisoning from cannabis edibles consumption usually come out around Halloween and are unfounded. At this time of the year, a part of the blame also goes to the companies producing copycat cannabis-infused products that look nearly identical to popular candy products.
In April, researchers at NYU School of Global Public Health revealed that “copycat” edibles can have levels of tetrahydrocannabinol or THC “that far exceed the limits set by state cannabis regulations” and may be easily confused for popular snack foods. Several weeks after, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning to all consumers about the accidental ingestion by children of food products containing THC.
“Edibles are a popular and growing segment of the cannabis market. In states where cannabis use is legal, more than half (56%) of people who use cannabis consume edibles, with younger people more likely to do so,” reported NYU in a recent press release. “These copycat cannabis products are a public health concern given that people—including children—could mistake them for snacks and accidentally consume them. From 2017 to 2019, U.S. Poison Control Centers handled nearly 2,000 cases of young children ages 0 to 9 consuming edibles.”
The FDA said THC edibles can be easily mistaken for commonly consumed foods such as breakfast cereal, candy and cookies and accidentally ingested, which can lead to adverse events, especially in children.
Image: Courtesy of FDA
The agency further reiterated that some edible products are specifically designed to look like popular branded foods using similar brand names, logos, and package designs.
The FDA is aware of reports of copycat products packaged to look like Cap’n Crunch, Cocoa Pebbles, Cocoa Puffs, Froot Loops, Fruity Pebbles, Nerds Ropes, Starbursts, Sour Patch Kids, and Trix, among others.
From January 2021 to April 2022, the FDA received more than 100 adverse reports of both children and adults who consume THC-infused edibles. Some of those individuals had adverse events like hallucinations, increased heart rate, and vomiting and many needed up in the hospital.
While Washington is often seen as more divided and polarized as ever, Mace still believes it is possible to reach across party lines to get important legislation passed.
Congresswoman Nancy Mace is in the final stretch of her first re-election campaign as a Republican representative in a district she herself calls a purple swing district. Where many other members of congress who are up for re-election have toted party lines on all subjects, Rep. Mace set herself apart from some of her Republican colleagues once she introduced theStates Reform Act (SRA), a cannabis legalization bill that she says is the bestof its kind and she believes is the only one that has a real shot at becoming law. In a conversation, Rep Mace talks pardons, reclassification, and State Reform Act.
Mace is a unique Republican official in a political climate where it is sometimes considered dangerous to have opinions that vary from those of the powerful party base. In an interview with The Fresh Toast, she described herself as “a republican who is very pro baby, pro gun, pro gay and pro pot.” She recently won her primary by 8 points, where she explained finding common ground on issues as one key to her success.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) / Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
This common ground is something that gave representative Mace some national media attention recently, when she, a Republican, commended President Biden, a Democrat, for pardoning those convicted of federal level for basic marijuana possession, as wereported in October. Saying positive remarks about the leading member of an opposing party is not as commonplace as it once was, but it is this bipartisan spirit, and the need to work together that Rep. Mace sees it as a key to the States Reforms Act’s potential success.
In regards to Biden’s recent pardon declaration of nonviolent marijuana offenders convicted of simple possession, Mace told us, “There’s still more to go yet, but it’s a good first step headed in the right direction, and something I think all of us on both sides need to be supporting.”
Mace expressed that the President’s pardons were a “nod to Federalism” in that these pardons free inmates on a federal level and encourage, but do not force, individual states to do the same. This distinction of creating laws, but allowing states the freedom to shape their own individual marijuana policies they think work best for their constituents is, according to Mace, imperative to finding bipartisan support for a cannabis bill like this.
“When you inject federalism and the rights of states on this particular issue, this is where we can find the most agreement on both sides of the aisle,” said Mace. “Because there is no way that you can do this and get it done if you don’t have republicans on board, and democrats alike.”
Now that Biden has issued these pardons the big question is what will happen next, on a federal level, to marijuana classification and scheduling. Mace, like the rest of America, is awaiting these next steps and written declarations. “What we’re hearing is that he cannot de-schedule but it’s going to be a rescheduling,” she said, “and then, what is congress’ role?”
Once more is known on this anticipated “rescheduling” or cannabis, Mace and other lawmakers can begin to know how the bill, and the legalization effort in general, can move forward. Mace is optimistic that this announcement and further progress can happen by the end of the year. “Whatever they decide, whether it’s 30 or 60 days form now — we are hearing they want to do it before the end of year — when we get the details and the fine print on the executive order and how far it goes on the rescheduling side of it, it’s what role does congress play in the next steps.”
Photo by Baris-Ozer/Getty Images
When it comes to congress’s role, one key element of the SRA that she points out is its bipartisan spirit, and to her, that is crucial if any marijuana bill hopes to be the bill that becomes law. “There are other bills out there that cannot pass both chambers, that cannot get bipartisan support. Where taxes may be too high, or they’re missing a regulatory framework.” One of these “other bills,” as we havereported, is a bill penned by Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer and Sen. Cory Booker named the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act.
While Washington is often seen as more divided and polarized as ever, Mace still believes it is possible to reach across party lines to get important legislation passed. She acknowledged that regardless of the outcome of midterm elections, she will likely need at least 10 republicans to be on board with this bill. According to Mace, it’s about finding Republicans who get it, and “who are the 10 that can make this happen.”
In our conversation, she pointed to herself as an example of how a bill like this can garner the support it needs on both sides of the aisle, and become law. “You’ve got to be able to work together with people,” she said. “I mean I’m a republican from South Carolina putting forth non-partisan legislation that’s reasonable, responsible and fair, and safe.”
When asked if she thinks being anti-legalization or against cannabis in general will eventually make politicians in today’s world less electable, she said, “The longer we wait to do anything at the federal level and the states that are dragging on this issue, the worse it’s going to get. The less support those elected officials are going to have.”
She also mentioned a growing group of voters who are incredibly passionate on this issue. She can even see people voting on this issue just as some groups vote on other major issues like gun control and abortion can sway voters to one side and bring them to the polls with vigor. “There are coalitions that vote on very specific issues,” she said. “And I do believe this is a growing coalition of people who weren’t as vocal maybe in years past but are becoming more vocal, because the frustration is palpable.”
Congresswoman Mace is looking forward to the next steps, including a hearing with the oversight committee. This bipartisan hearing is set to take place in November after the election.
