Tuesday, January 9, 2018
Unsurprisingly, Colorado congressional contingent contesting AG Sessions' decision to rescind Cole Memo
Two new article from the Denver Post detail the various steps being taken by various members of Congress from Colorado in response to Attorney General Sessions' recent decision to rescind the Cole Memo (basics here and here). Here are links to the stories and their leads:
Colorado congressional legislators fired off a letter Tuesday to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, asking that he reconsider last week’s rescission of the Cole Memo and related marijuana guidance. Democratic representatives Jared Polis, Diana DeGette and Ed Perlmutter, and Republican Rep. Mike Coffman signed the letter to Sessions. In it, they “strongly urge” the Department of Justice to reinstate the Cole Memo in order to ensure the Justice Department “is acting to uphold the will of Colorado voters and the rights of the states to regulate intrastate commerce.”
Colorado’s congressional delegation convened an emergency meeting Tuesday in Washington, D.C., to shore up protections for state-legal marijuana operations and, in turn, states’ rights. In the meeting, members advanced plans for federal marijuana protections and honed near- and long-term strategies to counter U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ rescission of the 2013 Cole Memo.
U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner said he plans to press Attorney General Jeff Sessions on federal marijuana policy when the two Republicans meet Wednesday.
In an interview, the Republican from Colorado emphasized that he is prepared, if he doesn’t get his way, to block all nominees related to the Department of Justice, including U.S. marshals and U.S. attorneys from other states. The comments build on threats that Gardner made last week after a decision by Sessions to rescind an Obama-era policy that left alone Colorado and other states that legalized marijuana in spite of federal laws against it.
“It’s my job to protect those states’ rights and states’ decisions,” Gardner said. “I would anticipate it being (Justice) officials. I would anticipate it being U.S. marshals (and) U.S. attorneys. But the bottom line is (that) this can be solved by the Department of Justice.”
I will be very interested to see and hear what becomes of Senator Gardner's meeting with AG Sessions. I am certain the Trump Administration and AG Sessions in particular would not like to see all DOJ nominations blocked as the Senator has been threatening. But I am also certain AG Sessions in particular would not be too keen on affording Senator Gardner a kind of "heckler's veto" over federal prosecutorial policies. Stay tuned.
Prior related posts:
- Some early thoughts and comments now that AG Sessions has rescinded the Cole Memo
- After new AG Sessions memo on marijuana enforcement, is marijuana industry now "in chaos"?
- New AG Sessions memo on "Marijuana Enforcement" says very little but still could mean a lot
- AP reporting AG Jeff Sessions to rescind Cole memo to give more prosecutorial authority to local US attorneys
- More astute commentary from astute commentators on new DOJ marijuana enforcement policy
- "Did Jeff Sessions Just Increase the Odds Congress Will Make Marijuana Legal?"
- US Attorney for Massachusetts refuses to provide more guidance on federal prohibition prosecution plans
- Louisiana Gov writes directly to Prez Trump urging him to urge Congress to preserve medical marijuana spending limit
http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/marijuana_law/2018/01/unsurprisingly-colorado-congressional-contingent-contesting-ag-sessions-decision-to-rescind-cole-mem.html
