In a day full of political surprises, former House Speaker John Boehner may have delivered the biggest one.
The Ohio Republican, who for years opposed the legalization of cannabis, announced Wednesday that he is joining the board of Acreage Holdings, a company that cultivates, processes, and dispenses the substance in 11 states.
What inspired the sharp U-turn?
“[What] really struck home with him was the fact that 20 percent of veterans...self-report that they use it,” said George Allen, president of Acreage, in an interview with Cheddar. “He’s a tireless advocate for veterans’ rights.”
Acreage reached out to Boehner about the opportunity. “When we first approached him about it, I think he was a bit skeptical,” Allen said.
Joining Boehner on the Acreage advisory board will be former Massachusetts Governor and 2016 Libertarian vice presidential candidate Bill Weld, who has “been very progressive on the topic,” said Allen.
Boehner, who resigned from the House in 2015 after 24 years in Congress, explained his shift on cannabis in a [post on Twitter](https://twitter.com/SpeakerBoehner/status/984022770752290818). His movement on the issue is in line with an overall shift in perception of marijuana across the United States, where more Americans now say they're [in favor of legalization](http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/01/05/americans-support-marijuana-legalization/).
“This basically sends the signal that we are approaching a time when full acceptance of cannabis as an appropriate medical treatment is coming,” said Allen.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/former-house-speaker-john-boehner-becomes-marijuana-ally).
The Tony Awards on Sunday lured 4.85 million viewers to CBS, its largest broadcast audience in six years. CBS says Monday that Nielsen data shows the telecast — hosted by “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo — scored a 38% increase over last year’s 3.53 million viewers. That’s the largest audience for the Tonys since 2019, when the telecast that year nabbed 5.4 million viewers and “Hadestown” was crowned best new musical. The latest version also had to compete with the second game of the NBA Finals, between the Thunder and Pacers,
After stumbling out of the starting gate in Big Tech’s pivotal race to capitalize on artificial intelligence, Apple tried to regain its footing Monday during a developers conference that focused mostly on incremental advances and cosmetic changes in its technology.
Six weeks before UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down outside a Manhattan hotel last December, Luigi Mangione mused about rebelling against “the deadly, greed fueled health insurance cartel” and expressed that killing the executive “conveys a greedy bastard that had it coming."
Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson once clashed on the court in the 2001 NBA Finals, but now the basketball legends are joining forces to revive the Reebok brand they helped make iconic.
Midea is voluntarily recalling about 1.7 million of its popular U and U+ Smart air conditioners because pooled water in the units may not drain fast enough, leading to mold growth.
