Bob Filner Urges Obama to Reclassify Marijuana as Legitimate

Filner and several Congressional colleagues write President Obama to back off medical marijuana

By Christopher Cadelago / SignOnSanDiego /  Originally published November 2, 2011 

Rep. Bob Filner and several congressional colleagues are urging President Barack Obama to reclassify marijuana as a legitimate controlled substance for medicinal purposes under federal law.

In a letter dated Oct. 28, the lawmakers expressed concerns with the Justice Department’s recent crackdown against California medical marijuana dispensaries that are operating legally under state law. State and local governments must be allowed to develop and enforce their own public health laws with regard to medical cannabis, they wrote.

 “During your presidential campaign, you repeatedly pledged to end federal raids against the individuals and collectives authorized by state law to use or provide medical cannabis, giving hope to patients who legitimately use medical cannabis to treat their conditions that their long struggle to safely access their medicine was finally over,” the letter states.

“By pursuing the same harsh policies that have been in place for years, we fear that the federal government will push legitimate patients back into the uncertainty and danger of the illicit market.”

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