Texas Democratic Candidates Running Against Anti-Marijuana Senator Embrace Legalization

Both Texas Democratic primary candidates running to unseat anti-marijuana U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) this November discussed their support for cannabis legalization and restorative justice policies during a debate on Saturday. Royce West, who currently serves as a state senator, touted a legalization bill he filed last year and said there are racial disparities in the enforcement of prohibition, which is also contributing to mass incarceration. “Obviously, the overpopulating of jails, most of those persons end up being African American males,” he said. “We’ve got to make certain that those little drug offenses, possession, are not in—those persons don’t end up going to jail or the penitentiary so we can keep our jails available for the hardened criminals.” MJ Hegar, a military veteran, agreed and said the ongoing ban on cannabis “only boosts cartel profits.” “I am absolutely for legalizing marijuana. I think we should be expunging the records of those who have been incarcerated for such. And I think that we have a mass incarceration problem, not just in marijuana but in the world,” she said. “I mean, we are one of the top incarcerated countries in the world and that’s not something that I’m very proud of, I don’t know about you.” She went on to criticize private prisons and said incumbent Cornyn has taken money from that industry and legislated “in their benefit.” The senator “makes sure that they’re at max capacity, which is max profit,” she said. “There’s a lot of changes that need to be…

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Source : MJ moment
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