{"id":48982,"date":"2021-07-21T12:22:01","date_gmt":"2021-07-21T20:22:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2021\/07\/21\/congressman-says-marijuana-is-only-a-performance-enhancing-drug-for-hot-dog-eating-contests\/"},"modified":"2021-07-21T13:45:26","modified_gmt":"2021-07-21T21:45:26","slug":"congressman-says-marijuana-is-only-a-performance-enhancing-drug-for-hot-dog-eating-contests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2021\/07\/21\/congressman-says-marijuana-is-only-a-performance-enhancing-drug-for-hot-dog-eating-contests\/","title":{"rendered":"Congressman Says Marijuana Is Only A Performance-Enhancing Drug For Hot Dog Eating Contests"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

A congressman on Wednesday blasted the suspension of U.S. runner Sha\u2019Carri Richardson<\/a> from the Olympics over a positive marijuana test and said cannabis is only a performance enhancing drug in the context of food eating competitions.<\/p>\n

Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) argued that it is hypocritical that athletes would be penalized for using marijuana when alcohol use is largely tolerated. And he said it\u2019s time for Congress to fix the policy gap and catch up with the public by federally legalizing cannabis.<\/p>\n

The comments came at a House Judiciary Committee markup of a bill to eliminate the sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine. The legislation, which passed in a 36-5 vote, doesn\u2019t deal specifically with marijuana. But Cohen took the opportunity to reflect on the consequences of cannabis prohibition and make a call for change.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarijuana is not a performance-enhancing drug unless you\u2019re entered in the Coney Island hot dog eating contest on Fourth of July,\u201d he said. \u201cTo take [Richardson\u2019s] right to appear and her dream away from her is absurd, and this Congress should see that we don\u2019t have these problems in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Cohen said Congress should deschedule cannabis and \u201cleave it up to the states.\u201d A bill to accomplish that in the House has already been filed<\/a>, and Senate leadership recently unveiled a draft of their own federal legalization bill<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf she got rip-roaring drunk on margaritas, Red Bull or whatever else you drink out there these days\u2014lagers\u2014she\u2019d have been fine because it wouldn\u2019t have shown up in her system. She still would have been allowed to run,\u201d Cohen said<\/a>. \u201cBut for marijuana, it could have been 20 days ago and just a puff or two, she\u2019s gone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s get real. The war on drugs is a total failure,\u201d he said. \u201cNancy Reagan was wrong. Everybody who followed her and the others who said, \u2018Just say no,\u2019 we\u2019re wrong because that wasn\u2019t sufficient.\u201d<\/p>\n

The drug war mentality that contributed significantly to mass incarceration in the U.S. also played a key role in getting the marijuana ban enacted at the international athletics level, with the country playing a leading role in imposing the prohibition.<\/p>\n

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) made that clear in a letter<\/a> to Reps. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) this month. And the first president of WADA, Richard Pound, made similar comments in a recent interview<\/a> with Marijuana Moment.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) also responded to the letter from Raskin and Ocasio-Cortez, and it asserted that the rules on marijuana for international athletes \u201cmust change.\u201d USADA had previously expressed sympathy for Richardson and indicated that it may be time for a reevaluation of the marijuana prohibition<\/a>\u2014but the latest statement explicitly calls for a policy change.<\/p>\n

USADA wrote that \u201cPresident Joe Biden described the way forward best when he said\u201d that the \u201crules are rules,\u201d\u00a0but those regulations may need to be reevaluated<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Also this month, the White House press secretary\u2014like USADA\u2014expressed sympathy for the runner and indicated that it may be time for a reevaluation of the marijuana prohibition<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Press Secretary Jen Psaki previously\u00a0declined to condemn Olympics officials\u2019 sanction<\/a> on Richardson when asked about the issue at a briefing with reporters earlier this month, but she told CNN in the newer comments that the case highlights the need to \u201ctake another look\u201d at the rules on cannabis, especially in light of the decision to bar the athlete from a second event that fell outside the scope of the 30-day suspension.<\/p>\n

USA Track & Field also said recently that international policy on cannabis punishments for athletes \u201cshould be reevaluated.\u201d<\/a> And following Ocasio-Cortez and Raskin\u2019s letter, a separate group of lawmakers also sent a letter to USADA<\/a> last week to urge a policy change.<\/p>\n

At Wednesday\u2019s hearing<\/a> on the crack-powder sentencing bill, Cohen also asserted that \u201cthis war on drugs is as much\u2014and I would submit a greater\u2014failure than Afghanistan.\u201d And if the U.S. can withdraw from that war, \u201cwe can get out of the war on drugs too.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The failed war on drugs fueled mass incarceration.<\/p>\n

It ruined lives, families & communities.@HouseJudiciary<\/a> just advanced the EQUAL Act 36-5.<\/p>\n

Our bipartisan bill eliminates the unjust sentencing disparity between crack-cocaine & powder-cocaine, which began at 100-1.<\/p>\n

PROGRESS.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Hakeem Jeffries (@RepJeffries) July 21, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Ds & Rs are working together to pass the #EqualAct<\/a> & reform drug sentencing laws. <\/p>\n

We must eliminate policies that have disproportionate effects on different groups.<\/p>\n

Our decades-long war on drugs must turn to treatment and cure, as opposed to incarceration. https:\/\/t.co\/sSt9qofoJ6<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Rep. Lou Correa (@RepLouCorrea) July 21, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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The legislation enjoyed broad support, though several Republicans pointed out that Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) endorsed the harsh penalties for crack when they were enacted in the 1980s.<\/p>\n

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The sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine is a relic of the failed \u201cwar on drugs.\u201d I introduced the bipartisan #EQUALAct<\/a> with @RepJeffries<\/a> @RepArmstrongND<\/a> @RepDonBacon<\/a> to eliminate the disparity. https:\/\/t.co\/lsf94aH01t<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Rep. Bobby Scott (@BobbyScott) July 21, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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GOP Bill Aims To Block Marijuana Purchases By Low-Income People On Federal Assistance<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post Congressman Says Marijuana Is Only A Performance-Enhancing Drug For Hot Dog Eating Contests<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\nRead More: Congressman Says Marijuana Is Only A Performance-Enhancing Drug For Hot Dog Eating Contests<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A congressman on Wednesday blasted the suspension of U.S. runner Sha\u2019Carri Richardson from the Olympics over a positive marijuana test and said cannabis is only a performance enhancing drug in the context of food eating competitions. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) argued that it is hypocritical that athletes would be penalizedContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48982"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48982"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48982\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48983,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48982\/revisions\/48983"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}