California Congresswoman Comes Out For Legal Marijuana

2 years ago

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Last month we told you about the state lawmaker who introduced a measure that would decriminalize and regulate marijuana sales in California. San Francisco Assemblyman Tom Ammiano says legal weed could bring $13 billion per year, money the broke state desperately needs.

Today Ammiano is getting some heavyweight backing. In an interview with CNN, Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) said the state should look into the prospect of regulating and taxing pot.

From Briefing Room:

"Well, certainly, I have seen in my own state of California people over and over voting a big majority the whole issue of marijuana and possession of that," Sanchez said this morning on CNN. "So maybe it would be a good pilot program to see how that regulation of marijuana might happen in California since the populous, the majority of Californians believe maybe that should happen."

Taking a page from a number of those who favor the reform of pot laws, Sanchez likened the issue to the prohibition of alcohol in the early 20th century.

"Well, certainly there is one drug - it's called alcohol - that we prohibited in the United States and had such a problem with as far as underground economy and cartels of that sort that we ended up actually regulating it and taxing it," she said. "And so there has always been this thought that maybe if we do that with drugs, it would lower the profits in it and make some of this go away."

Here's video of the Sanchez interview:

Should California consider regulating pot?
Yes.	646 (93.5%)
No.	45 (6.5%)

Filed Under: Democrats, Ballot Measures

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