Fairfax, Virginia – One might say that Bernie Sanders is definitely feeling the burn. The Vermont senator on Wednesday announced his support for reforms that would allow states to legalize marijuana. He stopped short of calling for nationwide legalization, instead saying the federal government should remove marijuana from its list of dangerous drugs. Marijuana is classified along with heroin and ecstasy as substances with “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”
“In the year 2015, it is time for the federal government to allow states to go forward as they best choose,” Sanders said at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, adding that the U.S. should “remove the federal prohibition on marijuana.” Sanders’ proposal would not only legitimize use in the states that have legalized marijuana, but would also solve a major dilemma for owners of marijuana businesses. Those companies, from retailers to growers, largely operate using cash, unable to accept credit cards, deposit their proceeds in banks and issue paychecks because under federal law their business is illegal.
However, in his style, the real estate magnate-turned Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has his own theory as to why Sanders wants to legitimize marijuana nationwide. “The only way he’ll ever beat me is if he makes sure that Republican voters have plenty of marijuana, so that they’re high as kites come election day. I mean, it’s no secret that Americans who vote red are the largest consumers of pot in the country, so that’s perfect for Sanders. And if they can’t get to the vote, they can’t vote for me, which is what the majority will do, as we all know. So, in his mind, that’s the perfect plan.”
“And I’m not even going to speculate whether he himself used the stuff back when he wasn’t the fossil he is now. But, who knows, old habits die hard and there must be a reason why he keeps saying all those things about the climate and now marijuana,” Trump added.
He also said: “However, what I find most shameful here is that a man of his age allows himself to want to harm others in order to stay in the race for the presidency. I mean, drugs are bad, you don’t need to be a scientist to know that, regardless of what they say about its medical properties. And to want to hurt millions of Americans, your own citizens, just to keep the other guy from winning is just a new low for American politics. I’m unscrupulous, but this is too much even for me.”