*By Jacqueline Corba*
Freshman Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is on a mission to pass a bill that would allow for expanded medical marijuana research.
"Research can demystify who is right and who is wrong," Gaetz told Cheddar's CannaBiz Tuesday. "It's kind of nice to let the science guide our policy making."
Last week, the [Medical Marijuana Act](https://gaetz.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-matt-gaetz-applauds-passage-medical-cannabis-bill-through-house) sponsored by Gaetz passed the U.S. House Judicial Committee with bipartisan support.
It's a "landmark moment" Gaetz said; it's the first time Republicans in control of Congress have passed a medical marijuana bill through committee. Next it will head to the House floor for a vote.
"I'm super excited about what potential cannabis has in healthcare, and I think we'll learn a lot more if we're not so stupid as a government to make the research illegal," Gaetz said.
The act would give research institutions "safe harbor" to study the potential uses, benefits, and risks of the drug, which remains a Schedule I classification under the federal law alongside heroin and LSD.
"I think that marijuana policy has in many ways been victimized by the overall chilled relationship between the White House and the Department of Justice," Gaetz said.
"I think it is really Jeff Sessions who opposes medical marijuana, and I'm not entirely sure he and President Trump will be on one another's Christmas lists going forward."
For Gaetz, Washington is obstructing its own view.
"Washington just needs to get out of the way so that we can really see the potential."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/medical-cannabis-research-act-passes-first-hurdle-in-congress).
Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida lawmakers are ratcheting up pressure on Walt Disney World.
Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday urged Americans to take action during “a critical point in our nation’s history” as thousands of protesters demonstrated across the country against new limits to abortion rights making their way through the courts.
As explosions and gunfire thundered outside, Sudanese huddled in their homes for a third day Monday in the capital Khartoum and other cities, while the army and a powerful rival force battled in the streets for control of the country.
Norwegian battery startup Freyr is planning its next factory in an Atlanta suburb because a new U.S. clean energy law offers generous tax credits for local production.
Next month, the IRS will release the first in a series of reports looking into how a publicly run system might be created.
Without citing a reason, the Delaware judge overseeing a voting machine company’s $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News announced late Sunday that he was delaying the start of the trial until Tuesday.
“This has been an unspeakable week of tragedy for our city,” said mayor Craig Greenberg.
The Supreme Court said Friday it was temporarily keeping in place federal rules for use of an abortion drug, while it takes time to more fully consider the issues raised in a court challenge.
President Joe Biden announced Thursday that hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children will be able to apply for Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act's health insurance exchanges.
Anyone who wants to buy a gun in Michigan will have to undergo a background check, and gun owners will be required to safely store all firearms and ammunition when around minors under new laws signed Thursday by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
