Don't Credit Cynthia Nixon for Cuomo's Pot Shift: N.Y. Assemblyman Gottfried
*By Chloe Aiello*
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo may have radically changed his stance on marijuana ー but his former Democratic primary opponent Cynthia Nixon shouldn't be congratulated for his shift, according to New York State Assembly Health Committee chair Richard Gottfried.
"On this particular issue, I don't think she gets any credit. I know from first-hand conversations from people in the Governor's office, as well as from their public statements going way back, that they have been working on developing this legislation for a long time," Gottfried, who has been working on marijuana policy reform since the 70s, told Cheddar Wednesday.
In a Monday tweet, Nixon suggested that her progressive challenge of Cuomo in the gubernatorial race influenced his late embrace of marijuana reform and other issues.
"Sometimes people ask me: was it worth it? YES. Here’s why," Nixon wrote on Twitter, citing a list from The New York Times reporter Shane Goldmacher compiling some highlights of Cuomo's 2019 agenda.
Included on that list were legalizing marijuana, ending cash bail, and codifying *Roe v. Wade *ー among other issues that were major priorities for Nixon during her campaign. Some have already seized on the tweet, arguing that Nixon scored a victory ー despite losing the election ー by pushing Cuomo further left. But when it comes to marijuana, at least, Gottfried said the governor's shifting views predated the election.
"There has been a really dramatic change in opinion in the Cuomo administration on this issue from back in '14 where he was pretty hostile to medical use. His thinking has I think really caught up with where the public is ー that goes back way before Cynthia Nixon's challenge," he said.
Gottfried said the delay had less to do with determining whether pot would be legalized, and more to do with the details of how exactly legalization might work.
"Do we organize it in ways that welcome in very capitalized big business? Do we try to structure it so that minority entrepreneurs and small businesses have more of a shot at being part of the market? That is what an awful lot of the discussion is about at this point, not the threshold question of do we allow adult use," Gottfried said.
Gottfried himself knows all too well what questions like these involve, having worked on marijuana policy reform for at least 40 years. He helped write a 1977 bill that aimed to [decriminalize marijuana in New York](https://www.nytimes.com/1977/05/05/archives/albany-agreement-reached-on-easing-marijuana-curbs-measures-passage.html?module=inline) and in 2014 cosponsored the bill legalizing medical marijuana in New York. He said he thinks the governor will probably regulate marijuana in a similar fashion to the way alcohol is regulated in New York state.
"We don't allow people who produce alcohol to distribute it, we don't allow them to retail it. Those are very powerful vertical disintegration statutes in New York going back to 1933," he said, adding that the approach helps include small businesses in the retail market.
"I think it's been a pretty good system. I think that is where the governor is looking."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/cuomo-expected-to-fast-track-legislation-to-legalize-marijuana).
Later today House Republicans will grill Snap, Tiktok and Youtube on how their products affect the mental health of teenagers. It comes after a report revealed that Facebook's photo sharing platform, Instagram, can be harmful to teen's mental health. Rishi Bharwani, Director of Partnerships and Policy, Accountable Tech joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
As the White House and Congressional leaders work towards finalizing the legislative framework of the Build Back Better budget deal, paid family leave, one of the hallmarks of President Joe Biden's Social Safety Net agenda, still stands in flux. Molly Day, Executive Director, Paid Leave for the U.S. joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss why the finalization of this bill is imperative.
Marjorie Mesidor, Esq., Partner, Phillips and Associates, PLLC and Dr. Anthony Santela, professor of health administration and university covid coordinator at the University of New Haven join J.D. Durkin and None Of The Above to talk about the expected fallout from New York City's vaccine mandate.
Leaders around the world have come together to discuss plans to bring action towards the Paris Agreement along with solutions on how to solve the evolving climate change crisis at the COP26 Summit. President and CEO of Center for International Environmental Law Carroll Muffett, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Rachel Cleetus, the policy director and lead economist of the climate and energy program for the Union of Concerned Scientists, joined Cheddar to break down some of the key goals from the COP26 summit and why leaders must focus on the science of climate change instead of getting bogged down by petty politics and the fossil fuel industry. "The main thing they have to do, make sure we're cutting our emissions sharply within this decade because the science shows that we have to cut global emissions in half by 2030 if we're going to meet our goals of averting some of the most catastrophic impacts of climate change," she said.
Carlo and Baker cover the big races to watch on this off-cycle Election Day, the concrete pledges starting to come out of COP26, Jeffrey Epstein keeps causing CEOs to lose their jobs, and Ryan Murphy's TV hit that wasn't.
The Dow, S&P, and Nasdaq begin November by not only ending Monday's session higher but with a record close as well. Melissa Armo, Founder and Owner of The Stock Swoosh, has her eye on major economic storylines and joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss what role the news could play on Wall Street.
The UN climate change conference kicked off on Sunday with about 120 world leaders and delegates gathering in Glasgow, Scotland this week, as experts continue to warn about the harms of heightened emissions and the effects on climate change. The topic of ESG investing is expected to be a top priority at the summit. Jefferies global head of ESG and sustainability research Aniket Shah joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Gifted and talented education programs in schools throughout the United States are falling under greater scrutiny as the race and class divide in the programs remain wide. Marcia Gentry, a professor of educational studies and the director of the Gifted Education Research and Resource Institute at Purdue University, joined Cheddar to weigh in on if advanced tracking for students can also be equitable for lower income students and students of color.
The Supreme Court is now weighing in on one of the nation's most restrictive abortion laws. The Texas law, which was enacted on September 1, bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. In addition, it allows any private citizen to sue anyone who helps a woman get an abortion. Jimmy Hoover, Supreme Court Editor-At-Large at Law360, joined Cheddar News to discuss more.
