Take a Stand 95TAKE
A S TA N Dformally rescinded the Cole Memo, although his new
guidelines did not order U.S. attorneys to give marijuana
prosecutions a higher priority, distinguish between medi-
cal or recreational use, or provide additional resources for
anti-marijuana efforts. Moreover, Sessions did not (and has
no power to) order states to change their laws or compel
local law-enforcement agencies to change their policies
regarding marijuana.
Sessions and the Trump administration do have the
option of proposing new federal legislation to increase the
penalties for possession or sale of marijuana or to provide
local governments with funds or other assistance in enforcing
anti-marijuana laws. However, many Republican legislators,
particularly from states that have relaxed marijuana laws,
might oppose higher penalties. Similarly, law-enforcement
agencies in communities that have decriminalized marijuana
would likely decline federal help in prosecuting activities
that they no longer consider a crime. On the other hand,
insofar as Sessions’s responsibility to enforce the laws as
written, these steps are reasonable options for increased
federal involvement in deterring marijuana production, sale,
and consumption.take a stand
- As a matter of policy, should marijuana be legalized in
all cases or just some cases—ranging from complete
legalization to legalization only for medical use when
prescribed by a doctor? If some possession is legal, what
should policies be for growth and sale? - Do you tend to support a state-centered or a nation-
centered perspective on federalism? Now revisit your
answers to question 1. Are your positions more consis-
tent with your views on federalism or with your policy
concerns?
Should the federal government be able to tell a state that it
cannot allow the recreational use of marijuana? While the use
and possession of marijuana is illegal under federal law, ten
states (Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts,
Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington) have
legalized nonmedical use. In most of these states, commercial
activity (growing and sales) has also been legalized. Several
other states have legalized marijuana use for medical pur-
poses. And in most other states, possession of small amounts
of marijuana is no longer treated as a crime. In the coming
years, several other states are likely to move toward partial or
complete legalization.The federal government should be “hands off.”
Up until recently, the federal government responded to
these changes in state law by adopting a “hands off” policy.
The so-called Cole Memo (named after Associate Attorney
General James Cole, who served during the Obama adminis-
tration) stated that the federal government would not pros-
ecute marijuana cases unless there had been a violation of
both state and federal law. This policy reflected an attitude
within the Obama Justice Department that prosecution of
marijuana cases was not a high priority. Moreover, some
Justice Department staff members (and perhaps President
Obama) probably favored federal legalization. However,
this step would have required congressional approval,
which would have been unlikely during Obama’s administra-
tion given the Republican majority in the House (and, after
January 2015, in the Senate). Thus, deferring to state law
helped move parts of the country toward decriminalization
without requiring additional legislative action and allowed
public support for legalization to build. Opponents of
marijuana legalization in Congress may eventually be
forced to reconsider their position based on the tides of
public opinion.The federal government should be “hands on.”
The situation changed after the election of Donald Trump.
Throughout 2017, Attorney General Jeff Sessions argued
that the federal government needed to be more aggres-
sive in its enforcement of marijuana laws as a means of
reducing drug abuse, fighting criminal organizations,
and decreasing violent crime. In January 2018, SessionsRecreational Marijuana
and Federalism
Federal drug enforcement agents raid a medical marijuana club.Full_04_APT_64431_ch03_070-101.indd 95 16/11/18 1:31 PM