The Northeast Cannabis Business Conference has a special supporter: Senator Elizabeth Warren. The National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) acknowledges this in an email with a letter attached from the Democratic presidential candidate that welcomes attendees to the Feb. 19-20 event in Boston.
The letter reads:
Dear friends,
Please accept my warmest greetings as you gather for NCIA's Northeast Cannabis Business Conference!
Our federal cannabis laws are outdated, and it is time to reverse the history of failed marijuana policies that have harmed communities and threatened our nation's public health and safety. That is why I have led bipartisan legislation to stop federal interference as states, territories and tribal nations determine their own approaches to cannabis policy. I also have cosponsored proposals that decriminalize cannabis at the federal level.
We need people like you in our fight for sensible cannabis policies that foster economic development and benefit families here in Massachusetts and across the country. Thank you for all you do, and best wishes for a successful conference - keep persisting!
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Warren
United States Senator
Warren is locked in a tight race with Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders. Current national polling has Biden ahead with 26.6% support, followed by Sanders (20.4%) and Warren (15.8%).
The Senator is a lead sponsor of the STATES Act and a co-sponsor of the more recent MORE Act and the Marijuana Justice Act. All three would amend federal marijuana policies. She's also a sponsor of the SAFE Banking Act and the CARERS Act, which benefits patients.
At her website, Warren states:
"It’s not equal justice when a kid with an ounce of pot can get thrown in jail while a bank executive who launders money for a drug cartel can get a bonus. It’s not equal justice when, for the exact same crimes, African Americans are more likely than whites to be arrested, more likely to be charged, more likely to be convicted, and more likely to be sentenced.
"We need criminal justice reform and we need it now. That means ending racial disparities in our justice system. It means banning private prisons. It means embracing community policing and demilitarizing our local police forces. It means comprehensive sentencing reform and rewriting our laws to decriminalize marijuana."
Warren has said that she's never used marijuana.
