When They're About To Take Away Your Only Method for Surviving the Trump Years

 

"Puritanism is the haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.”

--H. L. Mencken

Effing Republicans in Congress! 

[Credit: The Hill]

The hemp industry is scrambling to stave off what representatives are saying could be an extinction-level event engineered by Republicans in Congress.

The Senate late Monday passed a funding package that would reopen the government and fund the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration. Tucked into the funding bill is a provision that would re-criminalize many of the intoxicating hemp-derived products that were legalized by the 2018 Farm Bill.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) waged a last-minute fight to try to keep the provision out, threatening to drag out the process of debating the underlying bill until he got a vote on an amendment to strip the language.

He got the vote on Monday; Paul and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) were the only Republicans who voted in favor.

“The bill, as it now stands, overrides the regulatory frameworks of several states, cancels the collective decisions of hemp consumers and destroys the livelihoods of hemp farmers,” Paul said on the floor ahead of the vote. “And it couldn’t come at a worse time for America’s farmers. Times are tough for our farmers.”

The provision “prevents the unregulated sale of intoxicating hemp-based or hemp-derived products, including Delta-8, from being sold online, in gas stations, and corner stores, while preserving non-intoxicating CBD and industrial hemp products,” according to a Senate Appropriations Committee summary....

Doran's Crystal Ball

 

Destin Hall

Enjoyed Will Doran's forecast of what to watch most closely in Raleigh this year, with so many new characters running things, from the governor's office to the House speakership, to that pesky extra-Dem in the House who gives Josh Stein his best chance for a sustained veto (supposedly gives Stein that advantage, because there's always also Cecil Brockman to watch). 

Doran mentions a rather bold gesture of Governor Stein's -- a very public "olive branch" of bi-partisanship. The governor invited several Western Republican lawmakers on stage with him last week in Asheville when he was signing executive orders about Hurricane Helene, and he appointed Republican Sen. Kevin Corbin from Macon Co. as co-chair of a new committee Stein created to advise the governor’s office on Helene recovery needs. I hadn't picked up on that, and it looks like a good move.

Doran's background on medical marijuana legalization in North Carolina is interesting -- let alone the truly hilarious notion of "recreational marijuana." Legalizaion has been stopped cold repeatedly in the NC House, after the state Senate had passed legalization several times. "House leadership" won't countenance it, Doran says, and former Speaker Tim Moore would never let it come to a vote, apparently fearful he didn't have the majority of his caucus with him. Will the new Speaker (and comparative youngster) Destin Hall do better?

What Doran explores about a Trump immigration pogrom and its ramifications for the state's economy is also worth quoting at length:

Immigration could also require attention at the legislature. Trump has pledged a mass deportation of immigrants in the country illegally, and some conservatives are also now pushing to reduce the number of visas given for immigrants to work here legally. Either strategy would disrupt the local economy and potentially drive up inflation: Approximately 1 million immigrants live in North Carolina, many of them employed in large industries such as agriculture, construction, tech and health care.

The GOP is becoming increasingly torn between more populist voters in the party base and pro-business interests among the major party donors — and the question of how to handle immigration is just one area in which 2025 could bring clashes between those opposing factions.

 Will Doran reports regularly for WRAL in Raleigh.

Tillis Comes Out for the Business of Marijuana

 

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) told the Green Market Report, a pro-marijuana publication, that he supports creating a “comprehensive regulatory framework that treats marijuana just like tobacco,” arguing that “the federal government needs to figure out a safe way to allow this market to occur.”

That's actually solid conservative philosophy -- let the market govern.

But it again puts Tillis, who's already been censored by the NCGOP for suspiciously moderate views, waaay out there compared to his North Carolina brethren, who won't even enact a very strict joke of a medical marijuana law.

Sometimes Tillis just surprises us.

Graig Meyer, A Democrat With Some Guts

 

NC Senator Graig Meyer is noticeable as per the headline above, because Democrats are so predictably and eternally gutless in so many ways. Meyer posted and shared a powerful video about the inequities in the endorcement of marijuana laws -- and pinned it at the top of his Twitter feed -- to try to move his fellow members of the North Carolina General Assembly to lead on the issue of decriminalization of marijuana and its legalization in NC and stop being silently in support but publicly gutless.

Good for him!

The leading proponent of a medical marijuana bill in the General Assembly is a Republican. Democrats remain essentially and timidly quiet. Like ... what if Great Aunt Tilly finds out I'm soft on drugs!

The Difference Between New Mexico and North Carolina

 

The 2018 Farm Bill that President Trump signed into law legalizes the growing of hemp and the production of hemp products -- as opposed to marijuana, though both hemp and marijuana are essentially the same thing, cannabis plants, so the distinction in the law is almost invisible to a non-expert. The law mandates that legal hemp cannot contain more than 0.3% THC, the compound that gets you higher than a laundry line on a windy day. In North Carolina CBD oil and other products are legal under the Farm Bill, but clever scientists have learned how to extract Delta-8, Delta-9, and Delta-10 from hemp -- all still legal under the Farm Bill -- and Delta-9 especially can produce a high much like the high from straight marijuana. So for all practical purposes, in North Carolina recreational drugs are legal though our General Assembly still piously refuses to legalize marijuana even for medical treatment of debilitating illnesses. 

In New Mexico, where I am currently camping, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act into law in 2021. Adults are legally permitted to purchase and possess up to two ounces of marijuana and/or up to 16 grams of cannabis extract from licensed retailers. The law also permits adults to cultivate up to six mature plants for their own personal use. The personal use provisions took effect on June 29, 2021. Retail sales began in April 2022.

From all appearances, it's a thriving business, and New Mexico hasn't experienced any end-of-world after effects that are immediately apparent to the naked eye. New Mexico is decidedly blue. It voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in seven of the last eight presidential elections, including in 2020. Its state legislature has Democratic super majorities in both chambers, and all seven of its statewide executive officers including governor are Democrats.

Make of that what you will. North Carolina's law-making is firmly in the hands of some of the most conservative and self-serving politicians in the country, some of whom saw the dollar signs flashing over casino gambling but can't see any benefit in a green new deal.

Medical Marijuana in NC -- Nowhere Again

 

It's just not in the Raleigh Republican DNA to want to help people out:

Legislation that would legalize marijuana use for medicinal purposes in North Carolina is probably dead for the rest of this year’s General Assembly session, House Speaker Tim Moore said Tuesday, citing opposition by many fellow Republicans in his chamber.

A bill that would lay out the structure for patients with serious and life-ending illnesses to lawfully obtain cannabis and smoke or consume it passed the Senate by a wide margin over four months ago. But it has idled in the House ever since, save for a committee hearing on the measure in early June. (NandO)

Sen. Bill Rabon

Senator Bill Rabon has been pushing legalization for years, based on his own experience after being diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. Smoking marijuana saved my life, he's told reporters, and when he smoked it at age 48, it shure nuff wasn't legal. Rabon, who's also the Republican chair of the Senate Rules Committee, actually played a little hardball, according to the reporting of the Associated Press:

Rabon, the marijuana bill’s chief sponsor, tacked a floor amendment onto an unrelated health care bill favored by the House that said it couldn’t become law unless his bill also became law.

Apparently, bluff didn't work. Even the most restrictive, begrudging medical marijuana law does not interest hardline Republicans in the House.

Gov. Cooper Could Do Great Good With His Pardon Power

 

Gov. Roy Cooper

Joe Biden issued his pardon for just some 6,500 people convicted of Federal marijuana possession and suggested that state governors ought to do the same for people convicted on state charges. What would that mean for North Carolina?

In North Carolina in 2019, there were 31,287 charges of possession of up to half an ounce of marijuana, the lowest-level misdemeanor in the state that could result in a fine of up to $200 but no jail time. Of those, 31,000 charges, 8,520 resulted in convictions. More than 60% of those convicted of the crime were not white.

That same year, there were 3,422 charges for possession of more than a half-ounce but less than 1.5 ounces of of marijuana, punishable by up to 45 days imprisonment and a $200 fine. Of those, 1,909 cases resulted in convictions; 70% of those convicted were not white.

Almost 2,500 people were charged in 2019 with possession of more than 1.5 ounces but less than 10 pounds of marijuana, a class I felony, punishable by up to eight months in prison and a $1,000 fine. Of the 2,457 charges, 338 resulted in a conviction, two-thirds of whom were not white.

Self-justifying pharisees might observe those numbers and say, "Well, they're mainly Black and brown people because they're the ones doing the dope," which ain't true, no way, no how. They're just easier to spot and profile.

As of last week, Gov. Cooper is looking at it, or rather he's tasked his lawyers to tell him what and how he could take up the Biden pardon as a standard for NC. From what I read, Cooper has pretty unlimited discretion (though there appears to be an application process):

“The Governor may grant reprieves, commutations, and pardons, after conviction, for all offenses (except in cases of impeachment), upon such conditions as he may think proper, subject to regulations prescribed by law relative to the manner of applying for pardons."

We're depending on you, Guv, to help. 

Madam Foxx: Oh the Derpitude!

 

Did Bill Rabon Smoke Dope?

 

Bill Rabon

Bill Rabon, the powerful chair of the NC Senate Rules Committee, dodged the direct question of whether he himself had smoked marijuana during a grueling bout with chemotherapy to treat colon cancer. But that experience in 1999, well before he was elected to the Senate in the 2010 Tea Party uprising, fueled his determination to make medical cannabis legal in North Carolina (Senate bill 711), which now looks likely to pass because of Rabon's sponsorship. He's among the most conservative of Republicans, and he's bringing many of his conservative brethren in the NC General Assembly over to his side.

SB 711 would make North Carolina one of the last states to legalize medical cannabis. California was the first (naturally), but don't think for a minute that North Carolina will be unleashed by Rabon's bill from Victorian abstemiousness. Rabon and the other Republicans supporting the bill emphasize that it will be the most restrictive in the country. The list of "debilitating medical conditions" eligible for treatment with cannabis remains narrow and highly prescriptive. "Chronic pain" doesn't qualify. If you're claiming PTSD, you better have proof of military service in a combat zone. There'll be a higher-than-normal sales tax for consumers. Rabon's bill proposes charging dispensaries $50,000 to get a license, plus another $10,000 a year to keep it, with extra fees if they open multiple locations.

General Assembly Republicans want it clear that no one is going to have fun because of SB 711. The promotion of happiness would be very "off-brand" for North Carolina's Republican legislative majority.

The NC Senate Finance Committee passed the bill on Wednesday after hearing some testimony from the public. One gentleman said "he would qualify for medical marijuana if this bill passes, due to a tumor. But he questioned why there needs to be a higher-than-normal sales tax on marijuana, plus extra costs imposed on growing equipment, plus fees on dispensaries. 'The patient will pay that,' [he] told lawmakers, later adding: 'I’m going to go to the black market if you put a 10%, 18% tax on it.' ”

Will Doran reported, "Democrats in both chambers support the bill, although some say it shouldn’t be as strict as the Republicans backing it want. Some Democratic lawmakers have argued for full legalization, as Virginia just did in addition to another handful of states, while others haven’t pushed for full legalization but have asked — so far in vain — for the list of medical ailments to be expanded to include things like chronic pain or migraines."

"No" was the Republican answer.

Democrats and the Winning Politics of Marijuana Legalization

 

Drayton Aldridge, guest-blogging

If you spent election night glued to the presidential results, you may have missed that November 3rd was a huge night for weed. Voters in Arizona, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota passed referendums legalizing recreational marijuana. Medical marijuana measures passed in Mississippi as well as South Dakota (a moot point considering voters also passed the full legalization measure). In an election that revealed a bitterly divided country at all levels of government, legal weed managed to transcend the partisan split and win comfortable victories in both red and blue states.

These results cap off an extraordinary decade for an issue that until recently was viewed as radical and taboo. Since 2012 marijuana has been legalized in 15 states plus the District of Columbia. Legalization is now supported by a record 68% of Americans and is popular across a wide range of demographic groups. Even among Republicans and weekly church goers, support is just shy of 50%.

After years of foot dragging on legalization, there are indications that the Democratic Party is finally catching up with the American public. Earlier this month the House of Representatives passed a bill decriminalizing marijuana possession with the support of all but ten Democrats (six no votes, four abstentions). Only five Republicans supported the measure, though in perhaps a quiet acknowledgement of the bill’s popularity, 34 Republicans did not cast a vote. The bill will die inside Mitch McConnell’s desk, but it nonetheless illustrates that marijuana legalization is now being taken seriously in the halls of Congress by at least one political party.

While the House vote is welcome news, many Democratic leaders including president-elect Joe Biden still stop short of supporting outright legalization. Considering marijuana initiatives ran at least ten points ahead of Biden in every state where they were on the ballot, the president-elect and his party would be wise to fully embrace this massively popular movement. Politics aside, the legalization and taxation of marijuana would be transformative policy with far-reaching effects. It would create jobs and offer farmers a valuable cash crop. It would give seniors, veterans, and others a non-addictive alternative to painkillers, potentially stemming the tide of the opioid epidemic. It would help to alleviate racial disparities in the criminal justice system. And the revenue could fund schools, healthcare, and/or a Covid-19 relief package to keep people and businesses afloat.

The Democratic Party has a golden opportunity to lead on the legalization of marijuana and ride a popular wave of support to victory in upcoming elections. In order to unleash the electoral power of this issue, candidates need to not only support legalization but fight for it in their ads, campaign literature, and stump speeches. They have to smash the old stereotypes and make the case that legalization can improve people’s lives and go a long way towards solving many of our country’s problems. Meanwhile, Democrats would be smart to organize ballot referendums in every state where referendums are possible. Such a campaign could offer a rare opportunity for the party to simultaneously energize its base, attract infrequent voters, and siphon off parts of the Republican coalition that haven't voted blue in years.

The legalization of marijuana could reinvigorate the Democratic Party and help America recover from the devastation of 2020. After a pandemic and four years of Trump, a little weed could do the country some good.

Fighting Crime in South Carolina

So you're a college kid in South Carolina who just happens to know Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps, and may have burned one with the champion swimmer, and it's Saturday, and suddenly a dozen cops kick in the front door -- kick in -- with guns drawn -- guns freakin' drawn -- and then manage to find a few grams of marijuana, so now you're in jail being grilled about whether you smoked dope with Michael Phelps. " 'Were you at the party with Michael Phelps? Did you see him using marijuana?' It was all about Michael Phelps."

Dude, you're in South em-effing Carolina.

A former solicitor for Richland and Kershaw counties, now representing the student, said that in his entire legal career he had "never seen a search warrant executed for simple possession of marijuana."

And it's not just one pot-smoking college student offending the high morals of South Carolina. The article in The State newspaper says that a total of at least eight students have been arrested, and went to jail, so that the good name of the Palmetto Bug State would not lie besmirched by the likes of Michael Phelps.