NEWS
Why Chelsea Clinton’s Recent Statement About Cannabis is Dead Wrong
AD
The Democratic nominee’s daughter recently suggested that marijuana is a deadly drug while on the campaign trail in Ohio.
Published on September 28, 2016

As a large portion of the nation turned to Snapchat to help lighten up the terrifying aura that surrounded the first presidential debate that took place this past Monday, it is quite clear that this week has been a lengthy and trying one for the country’s political atmosphere. Though both candidates said things during the debate that likely rubbed some voters the wrong way, Republican nominee Donald Trump was by far the most arrogant and ignorant of the two candidates on stage, which seemed to bode very well for his opponent Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

Although many progressive cannabis users such as myself are finally starting to come around to the idea of voting for an allegedly corrupt politician like Clinton (mostly thanks to the horrifying prospect of a Trump presidency), her dodgy statements on cannabis and financial connection with the pharmaceutical industry are a reasonable concern for many. Her daughter Chelsea Clinton recently came out on the campaign trail in Ohio and said some pretty slanderous things about cannabis, leaving stoners scratching their heads at her relatively ridiculous statement. 

While Chelsea Clinton went on her anti-cannabis rant to the eager crowd in Ohio, she cited “anecdotal evidence from Colorado” that states that marijuana is potentially deadly. According to her, this evidence showed that people taking cannabis medically may have died due to the drug interacting with other things they were taking. Not only did she not specify where her anecdotal evidence came from, there have been absolutely no documented cases of fatal marijuana overdoses, which also takes into account cases of interactions between cannabis and other drugs. 

It seems as if Chelsea may be taking this controversial position in light of her mother’s vague stance on cannabis legalization. Back in April, Hillary Clinton claimed that she wanted to reclassify marijuana from being a Schedule 1 drug, and also claimed that anecdotal evidence shows the benefits it has on certain medical conditions and pain. But, her “wait and see” attitude on cannabis has left many expecting her to move it to Schedule 2 at most, which would put marijuana on the same level as cocaine. 

“I don’t think we’ve done enough research yet, although I think for people who are in extreme medical conditions and who have anecdotal evidence that it works, there should be availability under appropriate circumstances. But I do think we need more research because we don’t know how it interacts with other drugs,” Hillary Clinton said during a Town Hall in June 2016.

What Hillary and Chelsea seem to be denying, however, is that the research and evidence they want to see so badly is extremely difficult to obtain as long as cannabis is federally illegal. Though Hillary has never gone so far as to suggest that cannabis is fatal (at least not in this elections cycle), her daughter might be doing the dirty work for her as she fights to get the rest of Bernie’s stubborn progressive movement behind her campaign

Ultimately, whether the anti-cannabis slander isreally coming from Hillary or Chelsea, it’s not the brightest of signs for the country’s cannabis advocates. It is certainly possible that Chelsea Clinton is out to quell the hope some activists have that as the President of the United States, Hillary Clinton will fight for the legalization, or at the very least for the decriminalization of cannabis. 

NEWS
OHIO
MEDICINE
POLITICS
MORE...
Tyler Koslow
FOLLOW
Tyler Koslow is a Brooklyn-based freelance writer with an intensive focus on technology, music, pop culture, and of course, cannabis and its impending legalization.
Share this article with your friends!
AD
By using our site you agree to our use of cookies to deliver a better experience.
Accept
Decline
MORE FROM MERRY JANE