-By Warner Todd Huston
The Illinois Family Institute is a bit worried over the sudden about face that House GOP Leader Tom Cross has made on HB 30, a bill that includes legalizing medical marijuana sales in Illinois.
On April 15, Fox News Chicago reported that Cross switched from a “no” vote to “yes” because he had talked to people who use medical marijuana, “including one man who is a disabled veteran.”
Cross said the key to the legislation is that it limits marijuana use to particularly painful diseases such as cancer, Multiple Sclerosis, Lupus and Crones’ Disease.
Cross told Fox that he supports the bill because it has “tight restrictions” on how medical marijuana can be used and sold.
But in a recent emailing the folks at IFI prove they are not as sanguine of those restrictions as Cross. Calling it an “anti-family bill” IFI rails against Cross’ decision.
…to have Republican Leader Cross support a bill which is heavily supported by radical leftist billionaire George Soros is disconcerting, to say the least. (The drug culture magazine, Heads, calls Soros “Daddy Weedbucks.”)
Sorros and other pro-marijuana activists have been working hard to decriminalize marijuana in an effort to subvert the national anti-drug policy of the U.S. Government. The first step is legalization for “medical” use. So far, 15 states and the District of Columbia have enacted “medical” marijuana laws.
In it’s press release, IFI had a few pointed questions for leader Cross:
- Why does Cross think the politicians in the Illinois General Assembly should circumvent the medical and scientific experts at the Federal Drug Administration (FDA)?
- Why should our state lawmakers ignore the many warnings of marijuana use by federal authorities like the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)?
- Why would Cross ignore the concerns and objections of the Illinois law enforcement community, including the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police, Illinois Sheriffs’ Association, Fraternal Order of Police Illinois Troopers Lodge 41, and former Chicago Police Superintendent Phil Cline, among others?
- Since federal drug laws supersede “medical” marijuana laws, why would Cross support legislation that would make the state of Illinois, local municipalities, property owners, landlords, financiers and its citizens liable to federal action — including civil injunctions? HB 30 would create a licensing scheme that permits large-scale marijuana distribution and use, contrary to federal law. HB 30 would authorize conduct contrary to federal law.
- Lastly, why would Cross, who has a law degree, support the decimation of Illinois’ DUI laws? HB 30 allows a medical marijuana patient to operate a motor vehicle after 4 hours of consuming marijuana, while research shows that a single marijuana joint with a moderate level of THC can impair a person’s ability to drive for more than 24 hours!
IFI is urging members and concerned citizens to take action against this bill.
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“The only end of writing is to enable the reader better to enjoy life, or better to endure it.”
–Samuel Johnson
Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago based freelance writer. He has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 2001 and before that he wrote articles on U.S. history for several small American magazines. His political columns are featured on many websites such as Andrew Breitbart’s BigGovernment.com, BigHollywood.com, and BigJournalism.com, as well as RightWingNews.com, RightPundits.com, CanadaFreePress.com, StoptheACLU.com, AmericanDaily.com, among many, many others. Mr. Huston is also endlessly amused that one of his articles formed the basis of an article in Germany’s Der Spiegel Magazine in 2008.
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