Supporting Articles
History of Marijuana Legalization
Siff, S. (2014). The Illegalization of Marijuana: A Brief History. Ohio State University Stanton Foundation. Retrieved on September 4, 2022, from https://origins.osu.edu/article/illegalization-marijuana-brief-history?language_content_entity=en
History of Marijuana Laws
Martin, S. (2016, April). A Brief History of Marijuana Law in America. Time. https://time.com/4298038/marijuana-history-in-america/
Survey of Marijuana Laws
University of Georgia School of Law. (2020). Survey of Marijuana Law in the United States: Introduction. Retrieved on September 4, 2022, from https://libguides.law.uga.edu/c.php?g=522835&p=3575348
Legalization of Marijuana in Colorado
Monte, A.A., Zane, R.D. & Heard, K.J. (2015). The Implications of Marijuana Legalization in Colorado. Journal of the American Medical Association, 313(3), 241-242. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2014.17057
Executive Branch Policies
The executive branch has the job of enforcing laws in the United States, and in this, the president has the duty of ensuring laws are being executed correctly. The Constitution does not specifically grant the power to regulate marijuana to the federal government, but the executive branch has the influence to exercise these laws. While marijuana is federally illegal in the US, the federal government allows states to create their own policies. Presently, marijuana is medically and/or recreationally legal in most states, but the executive branch has yet to challenge any state laws that violate federal law. Rather than directly addressing federal policies for the legalization of marijuana, the executive branch gives guidelines and grants the space for states to make their own policies. [1]
Congressional Branch Policies
Congress, or the congressional branch, is a part of the legislative branch that has the power to make laws. Where the congressional branch does not have direct control over how laws are carried out, they have the ability to develop laws that help regulate funds, manufacturing, and distribution. As an example of the Congressional power regarding marijuana, in 2005, there was a dispute between a disabled resident of California and the Controlled Substances Act (Gonzales v. Raich).[1]The resident was growing her own marijuana for personal use in a legal state. She was not affecting interstate commerce or distributing it to the public and simply using it as personal medicine. Whereas she did not directly break any laws or disrupt or affect interstate commerce, Congress still had the power to regulate marijuana and the Interstate Commerce Clause on a small local level, and they destroyed the resident’s marijuana plants.