Cannabis law reform advocates have been spreading the word that Bernie Sanders seems to have the best marijuana and Drug War policy among candidates that have a legitimate shot at winning. Progressive advocates have certainly rallied behind the Vermont Senator while conservative and libertarian counterparts are sticking with Republican candidate Rand Paul for now. Sanders has generated much enthusiasm among many cannabis reform advocates as he was against the Drug War decades ago and he has made positive statements and policy proposals regarding both cannabis and the greater War on Drugs.

Many Cannabis Reformers for Bernie will be attending a debate showing at Clinton Street Theater in southeast Portland, Oregon, followed by a post-debate event at the World Famous Cannabis Cafe. From Cannabis Reformers for Bernie:

Join Cannabis Reformers for Bernie for this unique 420-friendly debate night after-party. (BYOBud)

The event is strictly 21+ and while the event itself is FREE, the venue has requested $10 cover charge. So make sure to bring cash!

We encourage you to find a debate watching party nearby. Many of us will be at the Clinton Street Theater from 5:00 to 8:00PM. You can RSVP for that at http://tinyurl.com/ouyp4yk Please do so ASAP as this event will sell out!

When you are finished watching to debate head on over to the World Famous Cannabis Cafe to hang out with your fellow 420-friendly Bernie supporters to discuss the debate, volunteer opportunitiesb with the official campaign, as well as how you can get involved with Cannabis Reformers for Bernie.

We also plan to provide a secondary screening of the debate for those who missed the first or didn’t catch the entire thing the first time.

Kitchen will be open to help satisfiy your post-debate munchies.

We look forward to seeing you there!

NOTE: The venue only fits 50 people and there will be more people there than have RSVP’d as we will be encouraging those leaving the Clinton Street Theater event (which seats 200) to head over to ours. RSVP for our After-Party NOW! > http://tinyurl.com/ocfw6pn

Should be a great time at the World Famous Cannabis Cafe, located at 7958 SE Foster Rd, Portland, OR 97206. As more debates progress, Cannabis Reformers for Bernie will look to have more events at the WFCC and to host similar events in cannabis-friendly locales.

It was surprising that a Google Consumer Surveys poll conducted for Independent Journal (IJ.com) showing Senator Bernie Sanders leading Hillary Clinton narrowly, 38.4% to 37.6%, a virtual tie, didn’t get more media attention. Granted, the poll seems like an outlier at the moment as other national polls have had the Democratic frontrunner leading the insurgent Sanders  by an average of 16.6% points, with Bloomberg (8%) and NBC/Wall Street Journal (7%) showing the closest margin.

Additionally, the methodology of Google Consumer Surveys is certainly unconventional as the poll utilizes respondents that agree to answer optional surveys at websites they are visiting. While the unique online survey process may seem unreliable to some, statistician Nate Silver ranked Google Consumer Surveys as the 2nd most reliable and unbiased poll in predicting the 2012 presidential election. From Independent Journal:

Sanders similarly leads among men polled, with 38.1% to Clinton’s 34.6%, trailed by Biden at 15.6%. But the liberal firebrand trails Clinton among women, 41.8% to 39.5%, with Biden at 11.8%.

The poll’s sample was 50.1% male and 46.1% female, with 3.8% saying they’d prefer not to reply. 67.3% of the sample identified as White, 11.3% Black or African-American, 7.9% Hispanic, 4% Asian, 2.2% Middle Eastern or North African, 2.1% American Indian or Alaska Native and 1.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. 20.8% of respondents listed that they were some other race or ethnicity.

Clinton, who at one point enjoyed a roughly 50 percentage point lead in the race, still retains a commanding lead in the RealClearPolitics average of polls, outpacing Sanders by more than 16 percentage points for the period from Sept. 17 to Oct. 4.

But Sanders has made massive progress in the past six months:

It will be very interesting to see the next round of polls following the first Democratic debate on October 13th. Hopefully, the candidates will have an opportunity to explain their different approaches to federal marijuana policy and the Greater Drug War. Bernie Sanders has been continually gaining in the polls as voters learn more about him, but this will be the first of just 6 times that he gets to share the stage with Hillary Clinton.

(Photo by Charlie Leight/Getty Images)

Ending the harmful consequences of the Drug War and reforming our failed criminal justice system have become mainstream positions supported by mainstream politicians and everyday people across the nation. Now, celebrities across many fields, with their ability to raise awareness (and money) have joined the fight with the #cut50 campaign. From the great folks at the Drug Policy Alliance:

Amy Schumer, Steph Curry, Ed Norton, Jesse Williams, Chris Pine, Russell Simmons, and Piper Kerman are among 90+ celebrities calling for reform to our criminal justice system. The stars are joining the campaign led by #cut50, a bipartisan effort to reduce our incarcerated population by 50 percent over the next 10 years.

The celebrity push comes on the heels of a historic deal on criminal justice reform last week. The bill, spearheaded by Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), will involve reductions in mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses, an expansion of the federal “safety valve” (which allows judges to use their discretion to sentence people below statutory mandatory minimums), and will expand reentry programming and early release.

“Our broken criminal justice system harms more than it helps and wastes $80 billion a year. Americans are ready to fix it. Now it’s up to the national leaders in both parties to answer this call by passing strong federal legislation,” said Van Jones, co-founder of the #cut50 campaign.

With less than 5 percent of the world’s population but nearly 25 percent of its incarcerated population, the United States imprisons more people than any other nation in the world – in large part due to misguided drug laws and draconian sentencing requirements that have produced profoundly unequal outcomes for communities of color.

It is great that more and more celebrities are joining elected officials and people across the nation raise awareness about this important issue. It is great to have famous people and politicians on board, but they need our help to force the hand of Congress. Too many lives have been ruined by our marijuana laws and the greater Drug War and the time for real change is now. You can easily help by signing the#JusticeReformNOW, which already has more than 130,000 signatures. You can see the list of celebrities that have signed here and be sure to support them and their business endeavors with your hard-earned dollars as well.

Many headlines regarding the latest Suffolk/USA TODAY poll contain headlines about the strong lead that Hillary Clinton maintains, downplyaing (if not ignoring) the impressive gain made by Bernie Sanders (and corresponding drop in support for Clinton). The Suffolk/USA TODAY poll does have the former Secretary of State leading the Vermont Senator by 18% points nationwide, 41% to 23%, while Vice-President Joe Biden sits at 20%. What some are ignoring is the fact that the last Suffolk/USA TODAY poll, conducted back in July, had the Democratic frontrunner up 59% to 14%, a whopping 45% margin. Clearly, the insurgent candidate has made up significant ground.

The 18% point lead is significantly larger than the 8% lead in the latest Reuters poll, so it will be interesting to see how the next rounds of polling play out, especially since a significant portion of voters feel that Clinton’s email server scandal is hurting her candidacy. The scandal doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon.

One very significant result of the Suffolk/USA TODAY poll noticed by Phillip Bump of The Washington Post as the reporter notes the dramatic drop in African-American support for Clinton:

Among white Democrats, Clinton is doing nine points worse since July. With black Democrats, this poll has her down 31.

The number of undecided voters doubled between the two polls, which is also noteworthy. Voters who are changing their minds about whom to support often make a waystation in the “undecided” category rather than switching immediately from one candidate to the next.

Part of the shift in support for Clinton might be due to the decline in her net favorability among blacks. Opinions of Clinton have dropped among all Democrats as we’ve seen before. Among blacks, the decline has been greater — and the increase in favorable views of Sanders has been stark. Clinton is down 16 points in net favorability, and Sanders is up 31. (The margin of error here, we would reinforce, is 8.5 points.)

Cannabis law reform advocates and Drug War reformers have largely flocked to the candidacy of Bernie Sanders because of his willingness to legalize marijuana, mention that states should be able to legalize cannabis without restrictions, declare the Drug War a failure and call for the abolishment of private prisons. The Drug War has systematically decimated the African-American community and Sanders’ positions on the Drug War, in addition to his response to the Black Lives Matter movement and endorsement from Civil Rights activist Professor Cornel West, have likely helped Sanders’s standing among people of color recently.

If more and more people hear about Sanders’ platform, learn of his history, more people of color will likely move into his column, especially if he wins Iowa and/or New Hampshire, demonstrating that he can win. The support of African-Americans is certainly a key for Hillary Clinton, if she continues to lose support among people of color, Senator Sanders may just win the Democratic nomination and propose the most progressive Drug War reforms of any presidential nominee in history and help move our country even further in the correct direction.

(Featured photo credit: Getty Images)

Pope Francis hasn’t been on the right side of history when it comes to marijuana legalization and completely ending prohibition, but he did note the failure of the Drug War during his United Nations address last Friday. After speaking about his concerns around armed violence in countries like Ukraine and Syria, Francis then spoke about the failed Drug War, as the Latin Times reports:

“Along the same lines I would mention another kind of conflict which is not always so open, yet is silently killing millions of people. Another kind of war experienced by many of our societies as a result of the narcotics trade,” Pope Francis said.

The Pope’s address distills the festering frustrations of many of his faithful across Latin America who have to deal with the daily problems that accompany the War on Drugs, from Mexico, to Colombia, to Brazil.

Francis argues that the negative result is not just the availability of drugs, but a surplus of criminal activity and violence. Without naming individual countries, the Pope told the U.N. General Assembly that the Drug War was failing.

Longtime critics of the Drug War, especially many that previously served in law enforcement, know that prohibition increases the price of the drugs, making corruption of officials inevitable. This corruption, Francis stated, “has penetrated to different levels of social, political, military, artistic and religious life, and, in many cases, has given rise to a parallel structure which threatens the credibility of our institutions.” While Pope Francis, isn’t infallible on the Drug War (sorry), it is encouraging that he recognizes its failings. Hopefully soon, Francis will add his support to common-sense harm reduction policies and other crucial Drug War reforms.

(Featured Photo Credit: Mike Coppola/FilmMagic)

Maybe good news for Bernie shouldn’t be such big news as he has leads in Iowa and New Hampshire and has been gaining nationally. However, the conventional wisdom is still that Hillary Clinton is the big prohibitive favorite and that Sanders is going to have a hard time garnering support beyond liberal primary voters. The latest NBC/Wall Street Journal poll has shown a dramatic rise for the Vermont Senator as Clinton’s email scandal continues to add to voters’ feelings that the Democratic frontrunner isn’t trustworthy. From NBC News:

In the Democratic race, Hillary Clinton is the first choice of 42 percent of primary voters, Sanders is in second at 35 percent and Joe Biden third at 17 percent. No other Democrat gets more than 1 percent.

When Biden – who is still mulling a campaign – is removed from the field, Clinton’s lead over Sanders grows to 15 points, 53 percent to 38 percent, which suggests that Biden’s entry would hurt Clinton more than Sanders.

Back in July, Clinton held a 34-point lead over Sanders, 59 percent to 25 percent. And in June, it was 60 points, 75 percent to 15 percent.

Clinton complains about the “drip, drip, drip” of her email scandal:

As Reuters reports, Clinton noted the constant drip of revelations about her email correspondences and use of a private server as Secretary of State. Clinton has tried different tactics to put the controversy behind her, but new issues continue to trouble her campaign.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said on Sunday the politically damaging “drip, drip, drip” of revelations about her use of a private email server is out of her control and she is unsure when the controversy might end.

Clinton, who has seen her lead shrivel in the race for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, said she has tried to be as open as possible and take responsibility for the email flap.

“It is like a drip, drip, drip. That’s why I said there is only so much I can control,” Clinton told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

New emails have been discovered, contrary to Clinton’s previous statements that all pertinent emails have been turned over. The fact that Clinton’s statements about her emails have proven to be untrue obviously do not help a candidate who a majority of voters view as untrustworthy. The New York Times on the fact that Clinton can’t explain why some “missing” emails have been found:

Hillary Rodham Clinton said Sunday that she could not fully explain the discovery of a string of work emails sent from her personal account more than two months earlier than when she has said she first began using that address as secretary of state. But she said she hoped voters would look past what she called the “drip, drip, drip” of the furor over her emails.

“There was a transition period. You know, I wasn’t that focused on my email,” Mrs. Clinton said on “Meet the Press,” when asked about emails sent from her personal account in her first two months after taking office in January 2009. Mrs. Clinton had previously said she did not begin using a clintonemail.com address for State Department business until that March.

The State Department said on Friday that Mrs. Clinton had exchanged emails in late January and February 2009 with Gen. David H. Petraeus, then the commander of the United States Central Command.

An ABC News/Washington Post poll released on September 14th found that 44% of voters cared about the email scandal; that 54% of voters felt Clinton has been trying to cover up facts; 56% stated she was not trustworthy, with only 32% feeling that they could trust the Democratic frontrunner. If the “drip, drip, drip” of revelations continue, we will likely see Bernie Sanders continue climbing in the polls, a positive development for those fighting for marijuana legalization and greater Drug War reform.

(Featured photo credit: Photo: AP (left), Getty Images)

Many people in Oregon have been wondering why The Oregonian, the largest paper in the Northwest, would devote so much time to covering all things marijuana. The paper has a reporter, Noelle Crombie, covering the marijuana beat full-time and a few other reporters chipping in as well. Some long-time activists, who may remember that the paper once put quotes around “medical” when discussing “medical” marijuana, are somewhat distrustful of the coverage, while others welcome the mainstreaming of the coverage, especially when the paper endorsed New Approach Oregon’s Measure 91 legalization initiative in 2014.

Prohibitionists probably don’t approve of a relatively objective look at cannabis policy, wishing for the days of biased coverage that supported the Drug War. The Oregonian has one loyal reader, Dick Thomas, that has even taken the time to write detailed, multi-page memos each and every week critiquing the “fact” that the paper is “urging its readers to worship, grow and smoke dope.” The Oregonian’s Mark Katches has a great response that is well worth reading in full:

The legalization of marijuana and the start of recreational sales represent a dramatic sea change for Oregon. It’s an economic story. It’s a law enforcement story. It’s a healthcare story. It comes with cultural, political and environmental tentacles that spread far and wide. For many people, it represents a hard-won liberty – similar to the repeal of Prohibition. For many others, the new law feels both reckless and scary.

Like me, you may never want to buy it, sell it, grow it, or smoke it. But there’s no escaping the fact that legal marijuana will impact all of us – whether it’s a proliferation of new shops sprouting up in our communities, the potential impact on neighborhood safety or the way drug testing is managed in the places we work.

As the largest newsroom in the state, we are obligated to write about this historic shift, to explore the ramifications and to dive deeply into the details of how the new law will be implemented. That includes the kind of watchdog journalism we produced in March when we wrote about inaccurate labeling of THC levels in marijuana edibles and in June when we exposed the alarming use of pesticides in medical marijuana.

We’ve been getting more and more comments and messages criticizing our coverage and critique of presidential candidate’s stances on cannabis, wondering why “smoking dope” is so important to us when there is so many more important issues facing our nation. We respond that ending marijuana prohibition is ultimately about freedom, but that it also impacts many issues facing our country, from our economy to criminal justice policy to prioritization of resources.

A president’s marijuana policy demonstrates the commitment to local democracy and how important the bigger issues of the day are to the president. If the president argues that terrorism is an important issue of the day, then why would so many resources and time go towards investigating, arresting, prosecuting and imprisoning nonviolent people who are acting in compliance with state law?

The Oregonian is right to cover marijuana extensively because it does impact so much of our current lives, from cultural changes to the formation of a new industry to how much money we spend on prisons versus education. With federal marijuana policy gaining more importance as more states legalize marijuana, the cannabis conversation isn’t going away and the media will certainly be covering it, likely keeping Dick Thomas busy writing memos.

While Pope Francis has been progressive on many issues, from caring for the poor to protecting our environment, he hasn’t exactly extended his progressiveness to cannabis law reform. In fact, Pope Francis spoke out against legalizing marijuana and ending the Drug War as the Washington Times reported back in June of 2014:

Francis said during a drug enforcement conference in Rome that even the most limited of tries to give legal status to the drug is “not only highly questionable from a legislative standpoint,” but such would “fail to produce the desired results,” AP reported.

The pope’s comments — which aren’t that shocking, given his history of publicly ranting against the “evil” of drugs — comes just as Uruguay approved the selling of marijuana cigarettes in pharmacies. They also come on the heels of legalized recreational marijuana use in Colorado and Washington.

As CNN reported, Francis seems to be confused about the benefits of ending prohibition and the addictive nature of marijuana:

But Francis said such policies are “not only highly questionable from a legislative standpoint, but they fail to produce the desired effects.”

“To think that harm can be reduced by permitting drug addicts to use narcotics in no way resolves the problem,” he said.

Ending prohibition takes substances out of the criminal element and places it into a regulated system that creates jobs, generates revenue and better prioritizes law enforcement resources. Alcohol prohibition was a disaster for the United States, enriching gangsters like Al Capone; ending alcohol prohibition achieved the goal of eliminating the criminal element from the trade.

Despite Pope Francis’ fallibility on marijuana legalization, he has proven himself to be a compassionate man that truly cares for all people from all walks of life, included those behind bars. During his United States tour, Francis will be visiting the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia and meeting Ed Gilchrist, who was sentenced to prison after trying to sell 7 pounds of cannabis to undercover police officers. From the Huffington Post:

Gilchrist says it’s a bit frustrating that he’s behind bars for selling a drug that others are able to sell legally and that President Barack Obama has said is no more harmful than alcohol.

“It kind of ticks you off. But I knew it was illegal before I started. I knew the game,” he said.

“They’re going to be looking back at it in 20 years and say, ‘That guy actually did time for selling marijuana?’ and feel how stupid it is,” Gilchrist said. “It’s like going to jail for getting caught with some liquor. People used to go to jail for that.”

As the Huffington Post notes, in his speech before Congress, Francis said that “just and necessary punishment must never exclude the dimension of hope and the goal of rehabilitation.” It would be interesting to have Pope Francis answer whether going to prison for marijuana is “just and necessary” at all. Since Pope Francis is on record opposing legalization, what kind of sentence is appropriate for nonviolent marijuana offenders?

Hopefully Pope Francis doesn’t think that nonviolent cannabis offenders should be serving jail sentences that should be levied against violent offenders. What about the case of Jeff Mizanskey? Surely the pope wouldn’t support a nonviolent man sentenced to life in prison for marijuana and being robbed of more than two decades of his life, but when you support prohibition, these type of sentences are tragically inevitable as politicians will take advantage of being “tough on crime.” Maybe Pope Francis will “evolve” on legalization, or at least decriminalization, after meeting some nonviolent drug offenders in an American prison.

(Featured photo credit: Photo by Filippo Monteforte/Getty Images)

Bernie Sanders has long been considered a longshot to defeat Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination. If he is going to be able to unseat the Democratic frontrunner, he has to win the New Hampshire primary (and the Iowa caucus would certainly be very helpful as well).

New Hampshire has looked like a good stat for the insurgent candidate to win, the state does border Sanders’ home state of Vermont and the primary allows independents to vote as well (a likely strong voting block for Sanders, an elected independent who caucuses with Senate Democrats). The latest poll out of New Hampshire seems to show that Sanders’ strength in the Granite State isn’t just a flash in the pan. The New York Times reports:

As summer turned to fall, a chilly wind was blowing in New Hampshire for Hillary Rodham Clinton: A new poll on Thursday showed Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont surging ahead of Mrs. Clinton with 46 percent of the vote to 30 percent for her.

The poll, by the University of New Hampshire for CNN and WMUR, found that even if Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. entered the race, he would not garner nearly enough support to win or change the dynamic of the race. Just 14 percent of likely Democratic primary voters said they would back Mr. Biden. If Mr. Biden does not run, the poll suggests that more of his supporters would back Mrs. Clinton, but not enough to put her over the top.

There does not appear to be a groundswell of support in New Hampshire for a Biden run — 37 percent said he should run, but 32 percent said he should not.

Mr. Sanders has a strong lead over Mrs. Clinton among men and is nearly tied with her for support among women. He also bests her in personal traits: Voters view her as the least honest and least likable of the major candidates.

The University of New Hampshire poll did find that a large majority of primary voters feel that Clinton will win the nomination. If more and more polls show Sanders winning individual states and even competing nationally, that will likely change people’s perceptions. It will certainly change people’s perceptions if Sanders starts winning some early elections. However, if cannabis advocates want Sanders to win, as he has been more vocal on sensible marijuana and Drug War reforms, activists will need to continue working hard to convince people that Sanders deserves their support and that he can win.

In Ravin v. State, the Alaska Supreme Court determined that the right to privacy under the Alaskan Constitution provided residents the constitutional protection to possess, cultivate and consume personal amounts of cannabis. The Alaskan justices found that the government didn’t prove that the harms of marijuana outweighed the privacy interest of Alaskan residents. The landmark privacy ruling in Ravin didn’t go beyond marijuana, as defendants were unsuccessful with relying upon Ravin to legalize the possession and sale of cocaine for instance. However, the Brazil Supreme Court is currently deciding whether all drugs should be decriminalized. The Intercept’s Glenn Greenwald reports:

The past decade has witnessed a remarkable transformation in the global debate over drug policy. As recently as the mid-2000s, drug legalization or even decriminalization was a fringe idea, something almost no politician would get near. That’s all changed. That the War on Drugs is a fundamental failure is a widely accepted fact among experts and even policymakers. Multiple nations no longer treat personal drug usage as a criminal problem but rather as one of public health. Many of them are actively considering following Portugal’s successful example of decriminalizing all drugs. The global trend is clearly toward abandoning prohibitionist policies.

The rationale most commonly offered for decriminalization is the utilitarian one, i.e. efficacy: that prosecuting and imprisoning drug users produces more harm than good. Also frequently invoked is a claim about justice and morality: that it’s morally wrong to criminally punish someone for what amounts to a health problem (addiction).

By contrast, the Supreme Court of Brazil may be on the verge of adopting a much different and more interesting anti-criminalization justification. The Court is deciding whether the right of privacy, guaranteed by Article 5 of the nation’s constitution (one’s “intimate” and “private life” are “inviolable”), bars the state from punishing adults who decide to consume drugs. In other words, the Court seems prepared to accept the pure civil libertarian argument against criminalizing drugs: namely, independent of outcomes, the state has no legitimate authority to punish adult citizens for the choices they make in their private sphere, provided that those choices do not result in direct harm to others.

With more and more people realizing the harmful consequences of the failed Drug War, Brazil’s Supreme Court has an opportunity to add to the momentum for reform and really light a fire under a global debate. Hopefully, a majority of the justices will understand that the War on Drugs causes more harm than drugs themselves and move forward with decriminalization. With the success in Portugal and advocates in the U.S. and around the world looking to follow Portugal’s model, Brazil’s Supreme Court could start a trend for Drug War reform that looks a lot like the trend in the United States for marijuana legalization, as sensible reforms are passed state by state and country by country.

What will become of Pakistan’s marijuana crop and the larger drug trade now that government forces have escalated the Drug War in the region? Washington Post Islamabad bureau chief Tim Craig reports that according to residents in the Tirah Valley, security forces are targeting Pakistan’s lucrative hash industry to try to establish more government control over the historically lawless border region.

In recent weeks, paramilitary forces have erected a dozen checkpoints and are enforcing a ban on transporting hashish through tribal areas. Dozens of roadside stands that previously sold hash openly have been shuttered. And residents say private homes are being raided.

That spells big trouble in the Tirah Valley, where growing marijuana is part of the culture as well as the chief source of income for several tribes, including the Afridis. Hamid-ul-Haq Khalil, a member of Pakistan’s Parliament, said at least 100,000 people make their living cultivating or selling hash.

The valley typically produces at least 100 tons of hash annually, residents say. Much of it ends up in Pakistani cities, one reason hippies and college students from the United States flocked to Pakistan in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. But the drug is also smuggled around the world, and terms such as “Hindu Kush marijuana” and “Pakistani hash” are mainstays of pot-lovers’ lexicons.

Time and time again, government efforts to eradicate marijuana or any drug trade through Drug War tactictics, the government has failed and the efforts prove counterproductive. Strong-armed tactics merely push the price of drugs higher, whether it be cannabis or cocaine. If a drug kingpin gets taken down, then others fight to fill that void, usually with even more deadly consequences. Unfortunately, innocent civilians will be harmed in the process as the Drug War warriors will claim the need for more resources to fight an unwinnable war.

(Featured photo credit: A Majeed/AFP/Getty Images)

Massachusetts has long been on the shortlist of the next states to end cannabis prohibition and advocates are underway with an effort to put a legalization measure on the 2016 ballot.

With decriminalization and medical marijuana laws on the books, and the 2016 presidential election helping increase turnout, Bay State advocates have a great chance to pass a legalization measure in 2016. From the Massachusetts Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol press release:

BOSTON — State legislators and a former federal law enforcement official joined the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol at a news conference Tuesday in front of the State House to kick off the signature drive in support of a proposed ballot initiative to end marijuana prohibition in Massachusetts.

Sen. Will Brownsberger (D-Belmont), Reps. Jay Livingstone (D-Boston) and David Rogers (D-Cambridge), and Regina Hufnagel, a former federal corrections officer, were among the first to sign the petition. The campaign must collect the signatures of 64,750 registered Massachusetts voters by November 18 to place the measure in front of the Massachusetts Legislature. If the legislature does not adopt the measure, initiative backers must collect 10,792 signatures in June 2016 to place the initiative on the November 2016 ballot.

Statement from Rep. David Rogers: “I am proud to be one of the first signers of this well-crafted initiative. I filed legislation this session to tax and regulate cannabis because our society’s public health and safety strategies have failed when it comes to cannabis consumption. Rather than reducing use, over the years prohibition has put thousands of people in prison for nonviolent drug crimes, wasted countless tax dollars on incarceration and ineffective enforcement, and has helped give rise to a black market that funnels billions into the pockets of criminal enterprises. I am glad that the people of Massachusetts will have the chance to end this failed policy in 2016.”

Statement from Sen. Will Brownsberger: “It’s time we end marijuana prohibition. I hope the ballot question is successful.”

Statement from Rep. Jay Livingstone: “It is time for Massachusetts to shut down the illicit marijuana market by creating a new system that is carefully regulated, that returns revenues to cities and towns, and that ends forever the hypocrisy of punishing adults for choosing a substance that is less dangerous than alcohol.”

Statement from Regina Hufnagel of Boston, a former correctional officer for the U.S. Department of Justice: “Marijuana prohibition has been a public policy disaster. By regulating marijuana with age restrictions, we will undercut an illegal market that is openly selling to children as well as limit access that children have to the drug. We reduced teen alcohol and tobacco use over the past few decades with regulation and education. We can and will do the same with marijuana.”

Statement from Will Luzier, campaign manager for the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol and former executive director of the Massachusetts Interagency Council on Substance Abuse and Prevention: “We believe this initiative presents the smartest and most effective approach to ending marijuana prohibition in Massachusetts. Over the next two months, Massachusetts voters will have the opportunity to sign our petition and bring us one step closer to a more sensible marijuana policy.”

# # #

The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol is supporting a 2016 statewide ballot initiative to end marijuana prohibition in Massachusetts. For more information, visit http://www.RegulateMassachusetts.com.

Utah would seem to be fertile ground for GOP-outsider Ben Carson, a religious, soft-spoken neurosurgeon, but not democratic socialist Bernie Sanders, but both have surged ahead in the latest poll sanctioned by UtahPolicy.com. The poll, conducted by Dan Jones & Associates, found Carson leading national frontrunner Donald Trump 18% to 12% with former front-runner Jeb Bush in third at 11%.

On the Democratic side, the progressive Sanders leads Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton 22% to 11%, with Joe Biden actually in 2nd place with 16%; it will be interesting to see how the vice-president’s vote will be split up if he doesn’t decide to enter the race. One wouldn’t normally think that the more liberal Sanders would have a lead on his more moderate rivals in such a conservative state, but the former first lady and secretary of state clearly has a lot of work to do to be competitive in the Beehive State.

The Utah poll was conducted mostly before the 2nd Republican debate that has since led to Carly Fiorina and Marco Rubio to rise in other polls. The debate featured a back and forth between Rand Paul, Jeb Bush, Chris Christie and Fiorina. Unfortunately, Fiorina wrongly implied that alcohol is safer than marijuana and that cannabis played a part in the tragic death of her step-daughter. Rubio was fourth in the UtahPolicy.com survey at 6%, followed by Fiorina and Rand Paul at 5%.

Like most other GOP polls have shown thus far, Republican voters are clearly desiring a “Washington outsider” not aligned with the establishment. Only Jeb Bush, with 11%, could really be characterized as an establishment candidate as Trump, Carson and Fiorina have not held public office; Rubio is a new national face who hasn’t served out his first term in the Senate; and Rand Paul’s libertarian philosophy has often clashed with party leaders.

The New York Times profile by Kirk Johnson of Oregon’s marijuana laws is an extensive piece that covers both criminal law and commercial regulations that have been developed over the years, including the recently passed Measure 91 as well as recent legislation such as House Bill 3400 and Senate Bill 460. The entire article is well worth a read and explains how Oregon has done things a bit differently than the other states that have ended cannabis prohibition:

“Oregon is one of the first states to really grapple with the issue of what do you do with a record of something that used to be a crime and no longer is,” said Jenny M. Roberts, a professor of law at American University in Washington, D.C., who specializes in criminal law and sentencing.

***

One new law specifically says courts must use the standards of current law — under which possessing, growing and selling marijuana are all legal — in considering records-clearing applications. The other allows faster record-clearing for people who were under 21 at the time of a past conviction.

“In criminal law reform on marijuana, Oregon has gone further than anyone else,” said Leland R. Berger, who specializes in marijuana law and practices in Portland.

As The New York Times article notes, Oregon’s long history as a trailblazer on cannabis policy started with decriminalizing personal mounts all the way back to 1973. Advocates have worked long and hard winning and losing at the ballot box and legislative process to implement a marijuana law that “has gone further than anyone else.” Measure 5 in 1986 was followed by the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act in 1998 to Measure 33 in 2004 to Senate Bill 1085 in 2005 to Measure 74 in 2010 to Measure 80 in 2012 to House Bill 3371 & 3460 in 2013 to Measure 91 in 2014 and House Bill 3400  in 2015.

Oregon has a long, colorful history of sensible progressiveness on cannabis issues and we have a feeling that the state isn’t done yet. Advocates are already at work to improve marijuana laws even further and laying the foundation for greater Drug War reforms that will bring policies that have worked effectively in Portugal and other countries to hopefully be a model for the rest of the nation as we say #NoMoreDrugWar.

The Drug War has been a failed disaster by any measure, destroying lives and bankrupting budgets across our great nation. The mass incarceration of nonviolent people for drugs has been a tragic epidemic that has disproportionately hurt people of color and citizens living in poverty. For far too long, politicians scored political points for being “tough on crime” and filling up prison cells. Filling up these prison cells became big business as private prisons became a powerful lobbying group working to continue failed Drug War policies, such as mandatory minimum sentences.

Fortunately, the need to reform our prison-industrial complex has become a moderate political position that candidates across political ideologies have begun to address. Bernie Sanders, who has surged in national and state polls against Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, has stepped out first with an important bill that seeks to end the private prison racket.

Salon reports:

Sanders said “it makes no sense” that “America has more jails and prisons than college and universities.” Calling the growth of prisons in the United States “unacceptable,” Sanders said “it makes more sense to be investing in our children, making sure they stay in school, making sure they get the mentoring they need, rather than simply locking them up.”