Posted on 02/28/2015 6:16:37 AM PST by Ken H
A would-be Republican presidential nominee has changed his mind on marijuana. Sen. Ted Cruz said he supports Colorado’s state rights to keep marijuana legalized without federal interference during an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity at Thursday’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).
“I actually think this is a great embodiment of what Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis called ‘the laboratories of democracy,’” Cruz said. “If the citizens of Colorado decide they want to go down that road, that’s their prerogative. I personally don’t agree with it, but that’s their right.”
Cruz’s comments at CPAC bring him in line with a number of prominent Republican presidential candidates, including former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Sen. Marco Rubio and Sen. Rand Paul, who have all said they believe the federal government should not interfere in states where marijuana has been legalized.
(Excerpt) Read more at ibtimes.com ...
There is no enumerated power in the Constitution that authorizes the federal government to decriminalize marijuana.
“I actually think this is a great embodiment of what Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis called ‘the laboratories of democracy,’” Cruz said. “If the citizens of Colorado decide they want to go down that road, that’s their prerogative. I personally don’t agree with it, but that’s their right.”
DOPE sounds liberal to me.
He didn't say "Dope" - try answering the question.
Is my position unclear to you?
Opening the door to legalizing pot is LIBERAL CRAP!
Society does not need another poison!
“I actually think this is a great embodiment of what Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis called ‘the laboratories of democracy,’” Cruz said. “If the citizens of Colorado decide they want to go down that road, that’s their prerogative. I personally don’t agree with it, but that’s their right.”
Is my position unclear to you?
That's not what I asked - strike two. Which part of Cruz' statement above sounds 'liberal' to you?
IOW, screw the Tenth Amendment.
HA! I'm imagining a lot of FReeper heads exploding now.
Now, will the feds remove marijuana users from the list of prohibited people when it comes to 2nd amendment rights?
IOW Screw weed.
Strike three....
I’m not playing your game.
Yes, the Cruz-bots will need some serious reprogramming.
You fail to recognize that drug control hasn't worked any better than gun control. Even if it was done with good intent, the war on drugs hasn't stopped marijuana use one bit. Marijuana can be grown anywhere, its easier to grow pot than it is to build a gun, yet the federal, state, and local police waste tons of money every year in a futile attempt to snuff it out.
For the record, I have never done Marijuana or any recreational drugs, nor do I have any interest in doing so. I also think that potheads can be pretty lazy, boring individuals. However, I am also a realist and I realize that the crusade against marijuana is hopeless. Unless you plan on destroying every cannabis plant in the world, then marijuana control will continue to be nothing more than a Utopian pipe dream. Cruz is right, leave this matter to the States.
“I actually think this is a great embodiment of what Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis called ‘the laboratories of democracy,’” Cruz said. “If the citizens of Colorado decide they want to go down that road, that’s their prerogative. I personally don’t agree with it, but that’s their right.”
I’m not playing your game.
Conservative principles, such as federalism, are no "game."
You fail to recognize that legalization tells kids its no big deal and ruins the potential of a significant portion of another generation.
Pandering to the drug culture is no game either.
For decades kids have been reporting that they can get pot more easily than cigarettes or beer ... because sellers of illegal products never card for age whereas sellers of legal products usually do (in order to protect their legal access to the adult market).
Beg to differ. If you’ve imbibed any form of alcohol, you’ve enjoyed a ‘recreational drug’ (though, ‘legal’).
It gets pretty silly when the conservatives (tm), start splitting hairs.
Cruz could be 180 and calling for a death sentence; but, he’d still be completely WRONG RE: Constitution. Luckily, he’s exactly right here, I wish he’d come out the same way about ABOLISHING those extra-constitutional departments (EPA, DOE, etc.)
I guess we should ban smokes and booze too, so the kiddies don’t get any bad ideas...What? Wait! You mean kids still drink and smoke??
Amazing we’re ‘still allow’ to show, especially during the sporting events, that drinking is no-big-deal, eh?
I suspect it’s the last refuge, since smoking has all but been banned from non-print advertisements...
Save your condescending crap for the uninitiated.
I enlisted in 71 during Nam.
Between personal experience and observations during high school and the service, watching the impact on family and friends and now in cool Colorado, I don’t need any life lessons from anybody.
The increase in use in the schools just since it was legalized in Colorado, is sufficient testimony.
Anyway you cut it, it is a net negative on any culture.
Not necessarily true, there are plenty of legal substances out there which people abuse (salvia, paint, alcohol, etc.)which are just as dangerous as illegal drugs. Also, there are lots of perfectly legal activities which employers still frown upon. I don't expect that to suddenly change, as long as employers can set their own standards and contracts. Furthermore, you cant save people from their own stupidity, people that consistently make poor choices are going to meet Darwin sooner than the rest us. The State has no obligation to save people from themselves, only to give us the liberty to live as we choose.
Thank you for your service, but, does that have anything to do with the topic?
So, you ‘debate’ using anecdotal evidence? I too know of someone who worked with someone whom....again, what’s the point?
Under 18, NON-adults, are STILL illegal; but you think the boot off the neck made it EASIER? I was just as easy BEFORE.
Hearsay has no place here, nor do emotional outbursts. Either, the rule of Law (Constitution) is valid, or you just enjoy your own brand of Fascism.
My points, sarcastic as they might have been, are still valid.
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