6 minute read
Higher Ground
Politics and marijuana intertwine in 2020
By Larry Gabriel
Celebrities, musicians, sports figures, and even politicians have had their careers attached to marijuana in numerous ways, both good and bad. It was once big news when anyone of note came out in support of the stuff. ow the leader of the pack in the emocratic presidential primaries ƪatǦout says that he’ll make marijuana legal. emocratic socialist ernie Sanders would put a lot of capitalists into business with that pronouncement. These days, coming out in support of marijuana legaliation is a little less revolutionary than it once was. rankly, we’ve seen a steady stream of notable names coming through Michigan banging the gong for marijuana for several years now, some of them promoting their own brands. apper erner partnered with Gage to open the ookies provisioning center in etroit last month.
f course, rappers and weed have always been closely associated. That has played out in the High Times annabis up events. ust this past ugust, u Tang lan, ͞ hain, and arren G performed at the High Time annabis up in etroit. ut then again, the up folks have always brought through highǦprofile rappers for their groundbreaking events. Snoop ogg visited the Green uddha provisioning center in erndale while here for a show in anuary.
Professional sports figures are becoming fitures in the cannabis crowd too — at least retired sports figures. oer Tommy Hearns appeared at I in erndale for that store’s grand opening. etired ed ing arren Mcarty has been a fiture as a legaliation activist. ion alvin ohnson has a Michigan provisioning center license. Mike ames came out as a marijuana supporter just days before the ions released him and his playing career ended. ormer etroit Piston ohn Salley spoke at last year’s Hash ash.
“Salley was ȑaȒ pretty beloved figure on behalf of the Pistons,” says ick ettell, a Hash ash organier. “I doubt that back then any of his fans thought in ͟0 years this guy is going to be an advocate for the cannabis cause.”
omedianǦactor Tommy hong has been a cannabis advocate for, like, forever, and has made Michigan one of his regular haunts this past decade. pect his hong’s hoice products to show up around here as recreational marijuana spreads across the state.
Politicians are taking their whacks with weed too. ormer ew Meico Governor Gary ohnson announced his ͞0͝͞ candidacy for president as a libertarian at the ͞0͝͝ Hash ash. ast year, ep. ebbie ingell became the first sitting national politician to speak at the event. ith the emocratic primaries upon us and much of the field in support of legaliation, could we see a highǦlevel surrogate for a presidential candidate pop up at the ashǫ ettell’s not naming names but says it’s possible there will be a national politician at this year’s bash pril ͠.
“It will be interesting to see how much the emocratic nomination may evolve between now and the Hash ash,” ettell says.
It will evolve, and with Hash ash in five weeks, we’ll be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel of this nominating process. e’ll be past Super Tuesday on March ͟, and the lessǦsuper Tuesday, March ͝0 the following week that si states, including Michigan, vote in. y then the field will be whittled down from the near ͟0 candidates we once had to the two or three headed for the finish line. Hash ash attendees will have a sense of whether we’re looking at a emocratic presidential candidate who supports marijuana legaliation at the federal level or not. e’ve had three former presidents, ill linton, George . ush, and arack bama, who used marijuana in their past but stopped using. ow we need a president who sees marijuana in the future. Maybe that’s a little homework for the marijuana gang as we rev up for Hash ash — in March, get out and vote for a candidate who will work to legalie marijuana across the country.
If you’re MichiganǦcentric, there’s more work to normalie weed and get
the system straight here. That’s another angle of the looming Hash Bash.
“We’re continuing to keep the focus on cannabis and the issues that we face,” says Zettell of Bash organizers. “People want to see a more equitable market — to improve this beyond simple legalization and possession of cannabis. There are issues that are really pertinent right now and cross over to cannabis. Fighting for prison abolition and fighting for justice in climate change — these are really important issues that you might have thought don’t have an immediate relevance to cannabis.”
It seems that the tendrils of cannabis inƪuence travel everywhere. et’s keep inƪuencing the growth.
Candidates on cannabis As we approach the March 10 Michigan primary, here’s a little reminder of where the major candidates stand when it comes to marijuana.
On Sunday, Feb. 23, Sen. Elizabeth Warren rolled out her plan during a speech in Denver, saying that she would reduce federal funding for law enforcement to states that won’t legalie marijuana. She also plans measures to keep big tobacco companies from dominating the market, social-equity provisions, and expungement. Warren promises to appoint marijuanaǦfriendly people to oƥces such as the , , and FDA in order to engage in a process of legalization.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, who became the frontrunner this week, says he would legalie marijuana on ay ne, which he probably can’t, but it shows where his heart is. Sanders has the most detailed and far-reaching plan when it comes to legalization. He would deschedule marijuana and remove it from the Controlled Substances Act and create a $10 billion development fund for communities devastated by the war on drugs.
Candidates Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Mayor Pete Buttigeig, and Tom Steyer have all said they support legalization at the federal level, but are short on details, and none of them have made the issue a focus of their campaign. According to cannalawblog.com, “(Klobuchar) comes across as having softened on Mike Bloomberg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Sen. Bernie Sanders, former Vice President Joe Biden, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar. SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
legalization more for political reasons than out of any true commitment and she has done very little to demonstrate that she really wants to legalize marijuana.”
Buttigieg doesn’t have much of a record regarding marijuana. He supports legalization but has not actively addressed the issue. Steyer had been mostly silent on the issue, but stepped up with a anuary statement calling for legaliation of marijuana and decriminalization of opioid possession.
ormer ice President oe iden has been reluctant to join the pot party, wavering on the subject. In anuary, he said he’s opposed to legalization without more studies on its health risks. Regarding former New York governor Mike Bloomberg, cannalawblog.com gave him “a D- grade because he does not support the legalization of marijuana and because of his history of antiǦmarijuana rhetoric and policies.”
That’s your lineup and their positions on cannabis. Happy voting.
