Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) joined other lawmakers, advocates and celebrities in New York City on Saturday to speak at a marijuana rally as he finalizes a bill to end the federal cannabis ban.
This represents the second year in a row that the file Co-leader at NYC Cannabis Parade & Rally. Also featured was the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), who introduced a bill to federalize marijuana Passed the full council last month.
Schumer stressed to the crowd that he is working to win bipartisan support for the upcoming bill that he plans to introduce with Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ).
“I’ve invited every American senator — every Democrat, every Republican — to come with us and tell us why they don’t support the bill or if they’ll do it, and I’m making good progress,” Schumer said. “I’ve already met six Republicans, so we can get 10 [and] We can get the 60 votes we need in the Senate to pass very important legislation.”
Today: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told attendees at a cannabis rally in New York City that he has already met with six Republican senators to discuss the upcoming federal marijuana legalization bill.https://t.co/0wsZwFfWMX
video via Tweet embed pic.twitter.com/23aB2B4PkN
– Tom Angell 🌳📰ⓥ (@tomangell) May 7, 2022
Schumer, who said the goal was “to legalize cannabis from one end of America to the other,” may actually need to win the support of more than 10 Republicans — himself a tough request — as not all 50 Democratic senators have. Support party legalization at this stage.
“This is the mainstream. The majority of Americans think we should legalize once and for all. And we are working to get that done in the United States Senate. We are working hard to get it done.”
Nevertheless, he expressed confidence in the prospects for reform in the rain-soaked New York City rally.
“No rain, or anything else, can dampen our enthusiasm for legal marijuana,” he said. “Nothing can stop us with you all standing shoulder to shoulder.”
Soon after Wyden and Booker finished drafting the bill, Schumer said, “We’re then going to get all our Republicans involved, as many as we can…and fight until we get 60 votes. The sooner we get that done, the better.”
For his part, Nadler described the House’s passage of his legislation last month as a “huge milestone,” but noted that “we have a lot of work to do before it becomes law.”
Advocates and stakeholders have been following Schumer closely as he and his colleagues prepare to present a dossier Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (CAOA)which they unveiled in draft form last year.
However, there was some frustration about the schedule, as was the leader earlier He said the plan was to present it last month Before walking back and saying that instead It will be served before the August holidaygiving lawmakers extra time to build bipartisan support.
Senate Leader He said last month he was making a “promise” To file a lawsuit in litigation cases before the new self-imposed deadline.
Schumer and other speakers in the marijuana march haven’t focused solely on Congress. People also celebrated the statewide legalization of cannabis in New York, where there are adult retail stores It is expected to be launched by the end of the year.
Schumer has promoted cannabis law in his state, saying he is “proud that New York has a more complete legalization bill.”
“We want to have the rest of America and catch up,” he said.
Meanwhile, one of Schumer’s senior staff as well Recently talked about the way forward The federal legalization bill, as well as the prospects for passing additional measures like cannabis bank reform, in the meantime.
As frustration grows over the delays in the Senate, there are some hoping the leader will allow legislation to protect banks that work with state-legal marijuana companies to come forward first.
Schumer and his colleagues have repeatedly insisted that blanket legalization is the priority and should come before the Safe and Fair Banking Act (SAFE), which the House has passed in form six times now.
The latest potential avenue for banking reform is the American Competition Act, a broad-based manufacturing law heading into a bicameral conference. The House included SAFE Banking language in its version, but it was stripped from the Senate. However, key participants in both chambers indicated that they would be Press to reattach the suggestion In the final package that is sent to the president’s office.
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It remains to be seen whether Schumer will pose an obstacle to that end, as Safeguard Banking Sponsor Representative Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) accused him of doing After the House put the reform into a wide-ranging defense bill last year.
When it comes to the device, the commander and colleagues said the recently extended timeline is essential, enabling them to spend more time improving the provisions of the law with Comments from the public and lawmakers from both parties It can help them overcome the steep voting threshold of passing through the room. Democrats have a slim majority in the Senate, and not all party members approve of legalization.
Meanwhile, many Republican members of Congress A bill was introduced last November to federally legalize and tax marijuana As an alternative to far-reaching reform proposals led by Democrats and a curtailment of cannabis scheduling deregulation by the Republican Party. The bill’s sponsor, Representative Nancy Mays (R-South Carolina), said she expected a committee hearing on her proposal.
A bipartisan group of Congressmen introduced a bill last month that would simply Directing the Prosecutor to establish a commission Responsible for making recommendations for a marijuana regulatory system that designs what currently exists for alcohol.
Representatives Dave Joyce (R-Ohio), Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), and Brian Mast (R-Florida) are collaborating on so-called effective preparation of regulators for the Post-Prohibition Regulated Environment Act for Adult Use (PREPARE) – a gradual reform designed to inform sweeping policy changes cannabis in the future.
Nebraska Activists Reveal Plan to Put Medical Marijuana on the Ballot After Major Funders Lose
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