The Green Mountain State is making history, becoming the first state to legalize marijuana, not through a popular vote, but by legislation.
But the mayor of the Vermont’s capital city Montpelier told Cheddar that things need to change on the federal level.
“I think it’s just appalling, the use of federal crime resources to be chasing marijuana use,” John Hollar said. “I think it’s really ironic that this is coming from a Republican administration that purports to support states’ rights. But when it comes to marijuana, it decides that this is something it’s going to deal with at a federal level...I hope it gets overturned by Congress or reconsidered by the Attorney General.”
His comments refer to Attorney General Jeff Sessions who recently rescinded an Obama-era law that allows states to regulate marijuana without federal interference.
Under its new law, Vermont residents can carry up to an ounce of marijuana for personal, recreational use and grow, though commercial sales are still prohibited.
Some members of Congress are fighting Sessions’ efforts with the REFER Act. The proposed bill, introduced by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), aims to protect states, and people in those states, that allow the use of cannabis.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has extended the closure of bars and indoor dining statewide and has ordered gyms, churches and hair salons closed in most places as coronavirus cases keep rising.
The United States is grappling with the worst coronavirus outbreak in the world, as Florida shattered the national record for a state’s largest single-day increase in new confirmed cases with a reported 15,299.
Julian Castro, former secretary of Housing & Urban Development, talks about the importance of stable housing for Americans. Castro also dissects former VP Joe Biden's plan to combat the housing crisis.
The federal government incurred the biggest monthly budget deficit in history in June as spending on programs to combat the coronavirus recession exploded while millions of job losses cut into tax revenues.
A spokeswoman says the first lady is focused on being a mother and a wife, and serving the country.
The U.S. Roman Catholic Church used a special and unprecedented exemption from federal rules to amass at least $1.4 billion in taxpayer-backed coronavirus aid, with many millions going to dioceses that have paid huge settlements or sought bankruptcy protection because of clergy sexual abuse cover-ups.
Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, talked about the discussions with Facebook's leadership surrounding hate speech and misinformation.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio grabbed a roller Thursday to paint Black Lives Matter in front of the namesake Manhattan tower of President Donald Trump.
The Supreme Court has issued a mixed verdict on demands for President Donald Trump’s financial records.
More than a decade after the term was coined by columnist Thomas Friedman in the New York Times, there is a Green New Deal proposal in Congress. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) have proposed a formal resolution that would frame climate change, economic sustainability and social justice together under a unifying theme, calling for a Depression-era national mobilization similar to FDR's New Deal, and serving as a litmus test for Democratic presidential candidates going forward.
