Category: Washington, D.C.
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Kamala Harris Offers Something Like Hope For Cannabis Legalization Nationwide
Cannabis reformers’ hope for cannabis legalization across the United States sits squarely on the shoulders of a former prosecutor who as recently as 2014 was laughing at reporters for asking her questions about legal weed. We are of course talking about Kamala Harris, the Democratic pick for Vice President—chosen by Joe Biden, virulently opposed to…
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The Outlaw Report Podcast Episode 04: Weed Smell in Maryland and the Limits of the DNC Cannabis Reform
In the latest episode of The Outlaw Report podcast, Scott Cecil and Brandon Soderberg discuss the new cannabis ruling in Maryland’s Court of Appeals related to smell and searching people, the politics of cannabis at the federal level and the Democratic National Committee’s decision to leave weed legalization off its 2020 platform. You can listen…
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Quick Hit: In Preparation For D.C.’s Initiative 81, a Psychedelics Reading List
On August 5, as expected, the Washington D.C. Board of Elections announced that Initiative 81—the “Entheogenic Plant and Fungus Policy Act of 2020”—covered extensively by The Outlaw Report, will be on the November ballot putting the decriminalization of psychedelics up for vote. Melissa Lavasani of Decriminalize Nature D.C. released a statement celebrating the confirmation that…
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Commercial Cannabis and Decriminalized Psychedelics in Washington D.C. More Likely
Last week, The Outlaw Report discussed The Blumenauer-McClintock-Norton Amendment which would prevent interference from the federal government in states where cannabis is legal expanding the protections already given to states with medicinal cannabis programs. On Thursday July 30, the House of Representatives voted on The Blumenauer-McClintock-Norton Amendment which passed with a vote of 254-163 (222…
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Congress To Vote On Bill Protecting States With Legal Cannabis; Democrats Reject Legalization As Part of 2020 Platform
This week, Congress is expected to vote on an amendment that would prevent interference from the federal government in states where cannabis is legal. Referred to as the Blumenauer-McClintock-Norton Amendment, after Earl Blumenauer (founding member of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus), Tom McClintock, and Eleanor Holmes Norton, the amendment expands the protections already given to states…
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Cannabis and Shrooms Enemy Andy Harris Backs Down—For Now
Standing before the House Appropriations Committee, Maryland Congressional Representative Andy Harris, wearing a mask, hunched forward to speak into the microphone and announced he would withdraw his amendment opposing Initiative 81 (the Entheogenic Plant and Fungus Policy Act of 2020), which would decriminalize psychedelics in the District of Columbia. Harris began by arguing for his…
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Quick Hit: What Happens When A Politician Gets Gifted a CBD Pen?
Last week, The Baltimore Brew revealed that Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, who has been known as being particularly progressive when it comes to cannabis reform, received a number of gifts over the past few years including some cannabis-related products from Select Brands. “The Peripatetic Prosecutor: Marilyn Mosby took 23 trips in 2018 and…
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Enemy to Cannabis Andy Harris Goes After Shrooms
Republican Congressman Andy Harris is at it again. Almost immediately after it was announced that Decriminalize Nature D.C. succeeded in gathering enough signatures to get the decriminalization of psychedelics on the ballot, the well-known enemy to cannabis reform declared that he would try to stop Initiative 81 (the Entheogenic Plant and Fungus Policy Act of…
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Amendment Would Allow Former Military To Reenlist Even If They Have Used Cannabis
Last week, Democratic Representative from Arizona Ruben Gallego’s amendment to the House National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed. If approved by both the House and Senate, it would allow people who had formerly enlisted in the military to reenlist if they admit they used cannabis while they were not enlisted. The amendment also applies to…
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The Outlaw Report Podcast Episode 03: Cannabis and Defunding The Police
In the third episode of The Outlaw Report podcast, Prohibited podcast founder Scott Cecil talks to reporter Brandon Soderberg about racial justice and cannabis amid nationwide protests against police violence following the police killing of George Floyd. Cecil and Soderberg discussed Washington D.C.’s proposed budget and its perceived workaround for facilitating a commercial cannabis industry…
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What Washington D.C. Statehood Could Mean For Cannabis Justice
Last week, the House of Representatives approved legislation to make Washington D.C. the country’s 51st state. The vote, which passed 232-180, would make the District and its 700,000 residents properly and fully represented (though it is very likely it will face serious opposition from the Republican-led Senate). Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton who sponsored H.R.51 (Washington,…
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Cannabis Reform And The Justice In Policing Act
Last week, in response to the ongoing uprisings against police violence, Democrats in Congress introduced The Justice In Policing Act. The police reform legislation intends to end racial profiling by police, bans chokeholds and no-knock warrants, reduces police use of military equipment, and pushes for greater transparency among police departments making it easier for more…