Mitch McConnell blasts Biden for granting clemency on state cannabis convictions
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Last week, President Joe Biden granted clemency to dozens of people with federal drug-related nonviolent convictions and commuted the sentences of 75 people serving time at home because of the pandemic. He also issued three pardons.
“America is a nation of laws and second chances, redemption and rehabilitation,” Biden said in a statement. “Elected officials on both sides of the aisle, faith leaders, civil rights advocates and law enforcement all agree that our criminal justice system can and should reflect these core values that enable safer and stronger communities. During Second Chance Month, I use my constitutional authority to uphold these values by pardoning and commuting the sentences of other Americans.”
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RELATED: Cannabis industry reacts to President Biden’s Clemency News
The cannabis industry’s opinions on this move were divided. Many praised the action and thought it was just the beginning of broader reforms, while others, like Jacob Plowden, New York director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy, said the industry expected more. He called Biden’s clemency “a decoy and a flurry of promises aimed at federal legalization.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) condemned the pardon on other grounds and attacked the action in general in the Senate last week, saying that “criminality originates from a tiny minority of Louisville residents,” adding add This is a nationwide problem thanks to “President Biden’s failure to secure our borders.”
“We need officers at every level to support the Blues, fight crime and restore law and order,” McConnell spat. “But the Biden administration is giving us the opposite.”
He went on to challenge Biden’s decision to commute the sentences of those incarcerated for nonviolent drug offenses.
“Just yesterday, the President issued a huge catalog of pardons and commutations, cutting sentence by sentence, particularly for convicted drug criminals,” McConnell said. “You never miss an opportunity to send the wrong signal. And until federal, state and local Democrats join the program, innocent people in Louisville and across the country will continue to suffer.”
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Biden & Cannabis: Major Reform Coming Soon?
What is Biden’s position on cannabis legalization?
The truth is that it’s not really clear, although Biden repeatedly said during his 2020 presidential campaign that he wanted marijuana decriminalized and previous cannabis convictions automatically erased.
After a full year in the Oval Office, Americans haven’t seen either.
Despite pressure from all sides, the president has not relented despite numerous letters from marijuana advocates, lawmakers, celebrities and those who have been negatively affected by the war on drugs and still are, including those behind bars because of it Marijuana-related convictions.
Is it possible that the pardon was actually the first step toward broader cannabis-related reform and action that Biden promised during his campaign? Or was it just bait and switch?
In any case, federal cannabis reform still needs to win 60 votes in the Senate before it reaches the President’s desk. This means it would take at least 10 Republican votes for all Democrats to agree, which many industry pundits don’t think is possible. With some Republicans not even supporting these “small steps” like clemency measures, it seems cannabis industry veterans might be right — reform isn’t progressing as quickly as many had hoped.
This article originally appeared on Benzinga and has been republished with permission.
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