President Joe Biden, in a video posted Thursday on X, touted the proposal as “an important move toward reversing longstanding inequities.”
“Look folks, no one should be in jail for merely using or possessing marijuana. Period,” he said. “Far too many lives have been upended because of a failed approach to marijuana, and I’m committed to righting those wrongs.”
Doesn’t really say what making it a schedule 3 drug actually means.
Yeah, we get it, taking it from 1 to 3 moves it from the group with heroin, LSD, ecstasy, methaqualone, and peyote, and puts it in the group with Tylenol with codeine, ketamine, anabolic steroids, and testosterone.
The Anabolic Steroids Control Act of 1990 defines steroids as a Schedule III drug. It assesses federal penalties for both the illegal possession and sale of steroids. The following are the federal punishments for both possession and sale of steroids:
Simple possession of steroids with no prior offenses:
Up to a year in federal prison; or
Minimum fine of $1,000.
Simple possession of steroids with certain prior convictions:
Minimum 15 days in prison, and up to two years in prison; or
Minimum fine of $2,000.
Possession with intent to sell
Up to five years in prison; or
Minimum fine of $5,000.
If I Use or Sell Steroids, What State Penalties Will I Face?
Each state has the right to legislate laws that regulate drugs they view as harmful. Most states echo the Federal scheduling of steroids as a Schedule III drug. Therefore, state punishments usually mirror the punishments for drugs of this category:
Simple possession can be characterized as either a misdemeanor or felony. One may face jail time of up to 2 years if in a state where steroid possession is considered a felony. A fine will usually be levied in states that list steroids as a misdemeanor.
The sale of steroids is a felony in every state. In some states, the punishment for selling steroids can be up to 7 years in prison.
So it looks like this whole notion of just re-scheduling it to “de-criminalize it” is a misnomer.
Amazing first steps. This will hopefully help to reduce costs for marijuana businesses, and their prices which will hopefully negatively affect the black market.
Oh, don't worry, I'm with you. I'm from Oregon, and I can tell you that the people who represent my interests in the House and Senate are specifically not the problem here. (We do have some bad ones in the east, but not in my district.)
I’d consider your point if the Democrats only voted for the bill. Cosponsoring is adding their name in support of the bill’s introduction to Congress in order to weigh on its importance.
I’m sure all 114 would vote in favor of it. I would expect most democrats would vote in favor of it. But the democrats have a pattern where if there needs to be N people to pass something, they’ll only be able to gather N-1 people to support it. That -1 will get attacked in the press and they’ll make a big fuss out of it, but importantly they’ll cause the bill to fail so that the democrats can continue to campaign on that point. See: healthcare, minimum wage
Possession of a controlled substance classified in Schedule III of the Drug Control Act, upon conviction, exposes the violator to a misdemeanor conviction for which the punishment is confinement in jail for up to twelve months and a fine up to $2,500, either or both.
I feel like I am missing a piece of the puzzle.
How does this legalize weed? This feel like the same thing as last time with less jail time.
My napkin guess is that this is some sort of specific process/tactic, either it only allows 1 2 levels of reclassification at a time or that was all that could be agreed on (with multiple agencies, likely the DEA limiting the pace). So either avoiding the Senate or the tiniest of steps that pretty much anybody will allow/defend. Slow-and-steady could be the plan, assuming Biden wins again and actually follows up.
Well that and it probably really helps with the turning-a-blind-eye, like the difference between ignoring/acquitting a hit-and-run fender-bender versus ignoring/acquitting the act of treating a no-traffic intersection (in clear conditions) like a 4-way stop. Maybe it will be enough to reduce hostility and move the relevant overton window over time while avoiding pushback.
EDIT: Looking at it more, this seems to be the department of HHS pressuring the DEA on clear medical use. As others say, the lower restriction might help further medical study which could in-turn result in further reclassification.
Feels a bit like they’re trying to put the horse back in the barn. If it’s only by prescription at the federal level, they may use that as legitimacy to crack down on recreational use and make it harder to get it for medical use.
As much as I am a skeptic of everything this administration pretends to try to do, but making it legal for medical purposes is what started the legalization process in every legalized state. Biden doesn’t make malicious moves, he just does half measures on everything that usually result in nothing but a show.
Add comment