Americans want it — some politicians prefer a nanny state

Why is marijuana legal in the US? According to the Pew Research Center, a staggering 88% of US adults say marijuana should be legal for either medical and adult recreational use (59%) or that it should be legal for medical use only (30%). Just one in ten respondents (10%) say marijuana use shouldn’t be legal. It has grown into a $20 billion industry and a proven revenue driver for states.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.) and U.S. Senators Corey Booker (D-NY) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), along with a slew of bipartisan senators from Alaska to Montana to Ohio, support The SAFE Banking Act was a way to give the industry the start of an infrastructure for a solid industry.

But some prominent figures firmly believe they know better and feel they have to oversee and ignore 88% of the population’s wishes.

Despite a slow federal process, the Department of Veterans Affairs has changed policies for veterans so they can use medical marijuana without losing their right to care and services. The change was based on science, data and need.

Yes, former Senator President Mitch McConnell has boasted about stopping the cannabis industry. But in 2018, McConnell managed to legalize hemp in the Farm Bill, creating jobs and revenue for Kentucky but stalling small marijuana businesses. He went on to successfully get hemp insurance provisions through the Disaster Relief Legislation and even passed a resolution creating a Hemp History Week.

RELATED: Maine gets it right when it comes to legal weed as California and others struggle

Florida has approved legalization twice. In November 2016, Florida residents voted to amend the constitution to allow medicinal cannabis in the state. The amendment passed with 71.3% of voters for the initiative. This comes after winning over 50% in a previous election, which Gov. Ron DeSantis rejected. Since then, the potential presidential candidate The state parliament and its Ministry of Health have done everything to make access to this facility as cumbersome as possible. DeSantis recently said that the smell of marijuana is one of the reasons he remains opposed to creating a regulated adult-use cannabis market in Florida. With a slew of laws he enacted related to cannabis, movies, Disney, colleges and elections, Florida is becoming the country’s largest nanny state.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is unfazed by a new poll showing a majority of Texans support legalizing marijuana for medical and recreational uses.

Abbott said his position hasn’t changed from his previous proposals — reducing the penalty for marijuana possession to a Class C offense, but not legalizing the drug.

Meanwhile, his “nanny state” policy has wreaked havoc on the state, from people being without power for days to being able to let Houston voters know their votes are no longer counting.

The road to legalizing weed has become a battle royale in politics, let’s hope the good guys win.