*By Jacqueline Corba*
Voters are effectively pressuring lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to publicly support the easing cannabis laws, said the deputy director of the National Organization for Marijuana Laws.
In an interview Tuesday with Cheddar, the deputy director, Paul Armentano said politicians were realizing that marijuana enjoyed greater popularity than they did.
"With the midterm elections approaching, more and more members of Congress from both parties now acknowledge that advocating for marijuana policy reform is not a political liability, rather its a political opportunity," said Armentano.
Last Friday ー on 4/20, of all days ー Sen. Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and the minority leader, introduced a bill to decriminalize weed. A few days earlier, the majority leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, had introduced a bill to remove hemp from the list of controlled substances.
Senators Kamala Harris (D-CA) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) have called on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to stop using federal anti-drug laws to block medical marijuana research. And even President Trump changed his tune last week when he promised Sen. Cory Gardner, a Colorado Republican, he would support legal protections in states where marijuana is legal.
A majority of Americans ー 60 percent, according to a Pew Research Center poll ー said they support marijuana legalization.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/inside-the-momentum-driving-politicians-to-back-cannabis).
Sec. Ryan McCarthy, a former Army Ranger and Lockheed Martin executive, told Cheddar in an interview on Tuesday that "the border wall is a national security issue."
Democrats and Republicans in the Granite State are finding themselves in agreement on opening its border with Canada to import cheaper drugs for its citizens suffering under onerous domestic pricing issues.
World Health Organization's leader Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesys revealed the name of the disease currently afflicting China and other parts of the world: COVID-19 (a mashup of "Coronavirus Disease 2019).
Revelstoke Coffee in Concord, N.H., has become an important pitstop this year for presidential candidates, giving locals a chance to meet with those vying for their votes.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the U.S. economy appears durable with steady growth and unemployment near a half-century low but faces risks from the broadening viral outbreak that began in China.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Tuesday, February 11, 2020
The plan proposes increasing military spending slightly and lowering non-defense spending, seemingly bucking the agreement made by Congressional leaders and the White House this summer that passed both chambers with bipartisan support.
Despite more businesses being owned by women and women of color, National Women's Business Council member Shelonda Stokes notes it's only the beginning of the story.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Monday, February 10, 2020.
Three days before the critical New Hampshire Primary, seven Democratic presidential candidates debated, with many of them fighting to survive in the race to challenge President Donald Trump.
