Rand Paul, Senate Torch-Bearer on Pot Reform, Wants Colleagues on Record
Spasm of legislation would allow medical pot 'federalism' and reduce possession penalties.
By Steven Nelson
July 25, 2014 | 2:45 p.m. EDT
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., is seeking to blaze a path for marijuana reform in the Senate with legislation that would officially legalize state medical marijuana programs and whittle away at federal drug possession penalties.
On Wednesday, the likely 2016 presidential candidate introduced an amendment to explicitly allow state medical marijuana regimes. On Thursday, he proposed a stand-alone bill that would lower federal penalties for repeat marijuana possession offenses and reform how law enforcement calculates the weight of drugs in baked goods.
“It is Rand Paul laying down his marker on this issue,” a senior Paul aide says of the medical marijuana amendment. The underlying bill, the “Bring Jobs Home Act,” is unlikely to become law, but Paul wants to force colleagues to reveal their position on medical use of the drug.
National polls show overwhelming support for legal medical marijuana. CBS News gauged support at 86 percent in January and Fox News found 85 percent support in February 2013. Several national polls in 2014 have found majority support for outright marijuana legalization.
“There’s no way to make any progress on this issue until the Senate takes a vote and the American people can know where their senators are,” the Paul aide says. “That’s the reason to file amendments to every bill that comes up – there might be an opportunity to force a vote and put the Senate on record.”
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