Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 8454, the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act. I advanced a precursor to this bipartisan bill through my Health Subcommittee and I'm proud to support it on the Floor today. According to the Department of Health and Human Services National Survey on Drug Use, over 48 million Americans reported using cannabis in the past year. Thirty-seven states now allow the medicinal use of cannabis and 19 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for adult use. But state laws and federal policy are a thousand miles apart. As more states allow cannabis, the federal government still strictly controls and prohibits it, even restricting legitimate medical research. The Medical Marijuana Research Act addresses these restrictions on research and alleviates a burdensome, out-of-date process for scientific researchers. First, it creates a new, less cumbersome registration process specifically for marijuana, reducing approval wait times and costly security measures. Second, this bill makes it easier for researchers to obtain the cannabis they need for their studies through reforms in production and distribution regulations. Under this bill scientists will no longer be forced to wait more than a year to become federally-approved to conduct cannabis research. They will also not be forced to use the cannabis grown by a government- authorized farm at the University of Mississippi.…”