Political Quotes

“I think we have had a good debate here today, and we understand the differences between the proponents and opponents. I want to close with a couple of comments. Marijuana and THC-laced products are illegal at the Federal level under the Controlled Substances Act. Nobody disputes that. Yet, we have seen how easy it is for individuals, including children, to get their hands on these products. They are marketed all over the internet in kid-friendly flavors. Not only are these illegal products easy to access, but they caused an outbreak of serious illnesses known as e-cigarette, or vaping, product use-associated lung injury--it is known as EVALI--and resulted in the deaths of 68 Americans. Centers for Disease Control confirmed this outbreak was linked to vitamin E acetate used in THC-containing e- cigarettes. The point is, though, as more people are pushed away from flavored tobacco products that are currently legal--again, we already made all this illegal for anybody under 21, so we are talking about adults here--they will start pushing products through illicit markets. We all hope that in the face of the tobacco prohibition, tobacco users would simply quit using these products, but the fact is, these products are addictive. They are designed so users cannot simply quit. Without accounting for this reality, this legislation will simply push individuals to more dangerous and unregulated products.…”