*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).
The U.S. residential solar market posted its biggest quarter on record in Q3 2019, according to a report by Wood Mackenzie Power and Renewables.
The House Judiciary Committee launched a lively, marathon session Thursday ahead of voting on articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, a historic step as the deeply partisan panel prepares to send the charges to the full House.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell announced on Wednesday that interest rates will remain unchanged and could stay there for some time to come.
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teenage climate activist, is Time's 2019 Person of the Year. The 16-year-old is the youngest person to ever receive the honor
Google's 'Year in Search' report is out, and it shows what we've all been looking for in 2019.
The New York State Department of Financial Services has proposed new guidance for licensed cryptocurrency firms that would make it easier for them to add new coins to their offerings, Superintendent Linda Lacewell announced Wednesday.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, December 11, 2019.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Tuesday, December 10, 2019.
House Democrats handed the president one of his biggest legislative victories, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to replace NAFTA, even as they announce articles of impeachment against him.
Stocks in the U.S. opened higher Tuesday, reversing pre-market losses after a report in the Wall Street Journal signified that American and Chinese negotiators were preparing to delay the next round of tariffs, scheduled to go into effect Sunday. The Journal cited sources close to the matter on both sides of the table.
