Governor Romney
Governor Cuomo Tells NY Lawmakers They Can Get a Raise if They Fix Marijuana Laws and Minimum Wage
New York has been a very busy place lately in terms of politics. Intense preparations were underway for days leading up to this week’s historic presidential debate between President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney at Long Island’s Hofstra University. Conspicuously absent from the conversation were many issues including the war on drugs and poverty.
New York’s Governor Andrew Cuomo has been tackling some of the issues that were have been missing from the presidential bickering. New York State lawmakers have been salivating for a raise (their last came in 1999) but the Governor told them a raise is out of the question until the working class is taken care of first. Mr. Cuomo is has been seeking a raise to New York’s minimum wage, and has tied lawmakers salaries to getting the bill done. Specifically the Governor said “I would not even consider, even consider a pay raise unless the people’s business was being done in a thorough, responsible way.”
The Governor has submitted a complex proposal that also shows New Yorkers he has not forgotten about his vow from the spring to enact marijuana reform. Several months ago Governor Cuomo was mocked by lawmakers and critics who have not moved beyond the 80 year old talking points against marijuana. However he was also applauded by those who appreciated his plan to save the state money and to fix New York’s “stop and frisk” program, which is almost exclusively carried out in NYC. The tactics by police have been criticized by many, including neighborhood advocates who are upset that police almost always target Blacks and Hispanics in the random searches. “Stop and Frisk” has made national headlines as it considered by many to be against the spirit of New York’s marijuana laws. Possession of 25 grams of marijuana or less was decriminalized in the 1970s in New York. Possession under 25 grams is supposed to result in a civil citation ticket, however police have found a way around this. Marijuana in “open view”, even if less than 25g, can be considered a misdemeanor and carry jail time. Often, police demand that individuals empty their pockets, and once they do officers make arrests and claim the marijuana was out in the open.
Lawmakers in NY have been slow to take up the issue. Even as many politicians admit that “Stop and Frisk” goes against the intentions of the state’s marijuana laws, it has been rare to hear comment on the issue. However, we are in the political season and we are glad to see the Governor engaging in the issues that Mr. Romney and Mr. Obama neglected. There will be some more shrewd political moves to come, but none may be as interesting as what Governor Cuomo has done. Like dangling a carrot in front of a mule, the Governor has effectively tied lawmakers salaries to future of workers and marijuana law in New York. For the first time we expect Albany legislators to start their shift on the issue.
Vice Presidential Showdown Being Held in Hemp Country
The political world has been buzzing since last week’s presidential debate between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama. Most analysts and viewers felt Mr. Romney won the debate and that the President seemed distant and unmotivated. The president has vowed to turn up the intensity next week as the polls have shifted toward Romney a bit. However before next week’s showdown we will watch the right hand men of the two candidates go into political battle.
Vice President Joe Biden and Congressman Paul Ryan will be in Danville Kentucky for their debate. While this may not seem significant for some, Kentucky is hemp country both in a historical sense and in a modern sense. Kentucky lawmakers, one of them being the widely known Rand Paul, have been fighting to reform hemp laws, which if possible, make even less sense than our marijuana laws. Our politicians are the quickest to include American flags on their lapelle but often the slowest to remember exactly what the stars and stripes stand for. America’s history on hemp will forever be intertwined as George Washington even required farmers to grow the plant in order to help during the revolutionary war.
Irrational and overblown fears of marijuana during the turn of the 20th century into the 1930s lead to lawmakers also outlawing hemp. The fact that it is virtually impossible to get “stoned” from this part of the marijuana plant would not serve as a deterrent for dogmatic lawmakers. Hemp stalks include a fraction of 1% of THC, where most strains of marijuana can range from 10-25% THC. As more is being uncovered about hemp’s versatility, even politicians who love reminiscing in the good old days of anti science are forced to reconsider their opposition.
The two vice presidential candidates will probably stick close to the talking points of their runningmates/bosses. Even as Joe Biden is known for abandoning the script, we do not feel he will be fielding questions on marijuana and hemp, even though much of the debate will revolve around recycled ideas as to how we get America back to work. If only each debate required a local segment, where the issues impacting the region where the debate is being held were discussed. If that were the case then last week we may have heard President Obama and Governor Romney articulate their position on compassion and relief while this week we would be treated to Paul Ryan and Joe Biden telling us how they would jumpstart hemp farming, create jobs, and educate Americans about the wonder fiber.