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U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions will reportedly rescind the Cole Memo (DoJ), effectively ending the moratorium on enforcing cannabis prohibition in states where it has been legalized:
Attorney General Jeff Sessions will roll back an Obama-era policy that gave states leeway to allow marijuana for recreational purposes.
Two sources with knowledge of the decision confirmed to The Hill that Sessions will rescind the so-called Cole memo, which ordered U.S. attorneys in states where marijuana has been legalized to deprioritize prosecution of marijuana-related cases.
The Associated Press first reported the decision.
Sessions, a vocal critic of marijuana legalization, has hinted for months that he would move to crack down on the growing cannabis market.
Republican Senator Cory Gardner says he will hold up the confirmation process for DoJ nominees:
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) threatened on Thursday to start holding up the confirmation process for White House Justice Department nominees unless Attorney General Jeff Sessions reverses a decision to roll back a policy allowing legalized recreational use of marijuana in some states.
Gardner said in a series of tweets that Sessions had told him before he was confirmed by the Senate that he would not change an Obama-era policy that discouraged federal prosecutors from pursuing marijuana-related offenses in states where the substance had been legalized. Colorado is one of those states.
[...] The Justice Department's reversal of the Cole memo on Thursday came three days after California's new law allowing recreational marijuana use went into effect.
Other politicians have reacted strongly to the news.
Previously: New Attorney General Claims Legal Weed Drives Violent Crime; Statistics be Damned
4/20: The Third Time's Not the Charm
Jeff Sessions Reboots the Drug War
According to Gallup, American Support for Cannabis Legalization is at an All-Time High
Opioid Commission Drops the Ball, Demonizes Cannabis
Recreational Cannabis Goes on Sale in California
Related: Attorney General Nominee Jeff Sessions Backs Crypto Backdoors
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 05 2018, @12:19AM (3 children)
Yeah right. It's never that black and white, now is it? The executive has always had discretion about which laws (and which offenders) to prioritize. Want a safer neighborhood? Get more patrol cars on the street. Want more efficient investigations? Pull those cars back in, focus on case investigations instead. Want to appear tough on crime? Harass grandma's for downloading music.
There's plenty of laws to enforce. Directing effort where it has the greatest effect is exactly the Executive's prerogative.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Friday January 05 2018, @12:43AM (2 children)
Prioritize != enforce.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by vux984 on Friday January 05 2018, @01:25AM (1 child)
True but if priority = 0, and therefore 0 budget and 0 man power is available for enforcement then enforced = false.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Friday January 05 2018, @01:50AM
Which is why I called it a bullshit loophole above, yep.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.