All Over Albany

Chuck Schumer is supporting marijuana decriminalization (and thinks legalization in states has worked out pretty well)

Chuck Schumer says he'll be introducing legislation for decriminalizing marijuana on the federal level, which would allow states to decide on the legality of recreational pot use. He talked at some length about the idea with Vice News this week. That's a clip embedded above. (He also talks about a few other topics.)

A clip from the clip about why he's changed his mind on this topic:

Number one, I studied the issue and we've now had some evidence, state of Washington, other states, where it has done lots of good and no harm. Justice Brandeis said let the states be laboratories, now we've had a few states, we've had a few laboratories, the experience's been a success. Let's nationalize it. ...

I've looked at what's happened in the states that have done it. It seems to have worked out pretty well. All the parade of horribles that people said would happen didn't occur. Crime did not spike in any place. There's no evidence that young people are using drugs of any type more. The pathway issue hasn't proven to be true. So it all makes sense, you know. When you get evidence -- act on it.

New York's senior Senator also posted a short explanation of his thinking today, highlighting the disproportionate impact that criminalization of marijuana has had on people of color.

Of course, Democrats don't currently control either house of Congress or the presidency. So the chances of anything coming of this sort of legislation in the near term aren't good. But it's notable that someone in Schumer's position in the political establishment -- he's the Senate minority leader -- has publicly taken this stance.

Public opinion has already shifted in this direction -- 61 percent of Americans think marijuana use should be legalized, according to a Pew Research Center poll. And given the generational breakout for that support -- basically each younger generation has more support -- that overall number is almost certain to continue rising.

New York State
David Howard King recently surveyed the political landscape here in New York for legalization and concluded that the state is headed in that direction. [The Alt]