Democratic National Committee delegates voted 105-60 against consisting of marijuana legalization in the party platform on Monday.
The draft version of the platform supports decriminalizing cannabis usage and legalizing medical marijuana, including that it must be left approximately the states “to make their own choices about leisure use“
The platform was not likely to ever back full legalization, given that Joe Biden, the presumptive candidate, does not back the policy. He supports federal decriminalization, which would remove imprisonment for ownership.
But Dennis Obduskey, a delegate who presented the legalization change during the meeting of the DNC’s platform committee, noted that the present document is an action back from the 2016 platform, which supported “providing a reasoned pathway for future legalization“
Both Obduskey and Iowa County Supervisor Stacey Walker, who functioned as a member of the joint Biden-Bernie Sanders criminal justice task force, argued that the existing federal laws disproportionately impact Black people.
” I’m urging all of you to approach this with an open mind and heart. Do something big here,” Walker stated. “Take one small however meaningful action towards altering the course of history If my Black life matters to you, you will consider this amendment. We want to get in good difficulty today, and I advise you to do the best thing and support it.”
A 15- individual panel, consisting of backers of both Biden and Sanders, initially created the 80- p