House Tries to Monkeywrench State Marijuana Legalization

The Enforce the Laws Act, which passed in the House, would be "dead on arrival" in the Senate, Harry Reid predicts.

If you want to know what's wrong with America, look no further then the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, which passed the Enforce the Laws Act on Mar. 13.

This bill (HR 4138) calls for Pres. Obama to "execute all the laws and not just the ones he supports," chides co-sponsor Rep. Darrell Issa. This specifically refers to federal marijuana law, which bans the drug despite state legalization in Colorado and Washington, as well as immigration and health care laws.

Every Republican and five Dems voted in favor by a 233-181 margin. One surprising Republican supporter was Rep. Dana Rohrbacher, who last year sponsored the Respect State Marijuana Laws Act.

"It doesn't seem right to me to continue to waste our limited resources punishing people for doing something when it's legal under state law, the majority of Americans want it to be legal and much more dangerous drugs like heroin are making a comeback," says pro-pot Rep. Earl Blumenauer. "I'd rather stop arresting two–thirds of a million people a year for marijuana possession and generate $100 billion over 10 years through taxes and savings."

Have no fear, the bill is going nowhere but into the Senate toilet, Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid predicts, saying it will be "dead on arrival."

Steve Bloom

Steve Bloom

Publisher of CelebStoner.com, former editor of High Times and Freedom Leaf and co-author of Pot Culture and Reefer Movie Madness.