Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper says the only way to stay on the federal government’s good side in the fight against cannabis is to “regulate the living daylights out of it.” The democrat told Cheddar in an interview Wednesday that Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ negative stance towards marijuana creates friction between state and federal authorities. “It’s very frustrating,” he said. “If states really are the laboratories of democracy, [legalization] is a huge social experiment going on all across the country.” That friction only creates uncertainty in the cannabis industry, leaving business leaders in a lurch. “[But Sessions] wants that uncertainty, he wants it to be bad for business,” said Hickenlooper. In order to maintain a positive relationship with the federal government, states like Colorado have to make sure there’s no risk of funny business, so opponents won’t be able to make a case against them. “We’re going to make sure that it is not corrupt, we don’t have gangs, we don’t have cartels, we are really going to work as hard as we can to make this…clean and above board,” Hickenlooper explained, pointing out that Colorado’s cannabis industry is currently worth $1.5 billion a year and “there’s taxes collected” on that. In 2012, Colorado became one of the first states to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes. “You can’t have laws that nobody obeys,” he said. “It’s just not good for society.” For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-one-thing-that-wakes-colorado-governor-john-hickenlooper-up-at-night).

Share:
More In Politics
Russia May Be Pivoting Its Strategy in Ukraine
As the war enters its second month, Russia may be changing course on its strategy in Ukraine. After suffering heavy losses, forces around the capital city of Kyiv appear to have stopped offensive operations and are now shifting their focus to taking over the south and east of the country. Terrell Starr, a foreign affairs reporter at The Atlantic Council, breaks down the latest from Kyiv. "Logistically this war has been a disaster. They have far more troops than [the] Ukrainian army has. What they don't have is good planning. The planning has been incredibly poor," he said.
Crypto on the Rise Amid Month of Volatility
Volatility continues to be the name of the game when it comes to crypto. Bitcoin, the most valuable digital token, saw a small jump today - one of several small rallies throughout the month of March. Caitlin Cook, vice president of crypto education company Onramp Academy, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Flood of Anti-LGBTQ+ Bills Have Been Introduced in States This Year
As of March 2022, almost 200 Anti-LGBT+ bills have been introduced in state governments across the country — especially directed at the transgender community. Human Rights Campaign State Legislative Director and Senior Counsel Cathryn Oakley joined Cheddar News to discuss the deluge of legislation. "Unfortunately we are seeing these bills come at transgender youth from every conceivable direction," she said. "Every support that a trans kid has, whether that's their parents, whether that's their family, whether that's their teachers or their guidance counselors or their coaches, whether it's their teammates or the librarians and the books that they read, whether it's curriculum, whether it's even just the ability to acknowledge that LGBTQ people have existed throughout history and are important in the fabric of modern American society. The bills that we are seeing filed across the country are targeting all of those pieces."
How Deepfakes Are Used In The War In Ukraine
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week seemed to have put out a video that urged Ukrainians to put down their arms and surrender to Russia. It was later revealed that it was a “deepfake,” a computer-generated video to mimic the Ukrainian leader. Cheddar News speaks with security expert Morgan Wright about how the technology is being used in the war in Ukraine.
Load More