Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said he was “maddened” by unsuccessful attempts to discuss marijuana policy with U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions. At the Jan. 4 Legislative Preview in Olympia, he was joined at the podium by (from left), State Rep. David Sawyer, D-Parkland, State Sen. Ann Rivers, R-La Center, and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.
Story by Tabitha Webster
“Good people don’t smoke marijuana,” said Jeff Sessions, United States Attorney General, while still a senator in April 2016.
Legal-pot states awoke on Jan. 4 of this year to a disconcerting announcement by Sessions: A directive issued by his predecessor, Eric Holder, protecting legal-pot states from federal enforcement, was being withdrawn.
Although Washington Governor Jay Inslee and Attorney General Bob Ferguson seemed undaunted by Sessions’ announcement, dispensaries and users have concerns.
Saith Piller, manager of Satori, a Port Angeles dispensary, expressed no worries about Sessions’ memo, but she couldn’t say the same for her customers.
Piller said pot shoppers fear they will suffer the consequences of the attorney general’s “willful ignorance.”
Liz Hallock, owner of Sweet Relief, another PA dispensary, commented that since the announcement she’s had an increase in customers, rather than a decrease. Satori experienced the same.
Sweet Relief customers have expressed anger and frustration toward what they see as a “step backwards in history.” They say the move is a distraction from “more pressing matters.”
Some worry that banks will be uncomfortable moving forward with the industry, which has remained federally illegal even while some states have legalized.
Some banks have expressed concern, but appear to be staying the course. Salal Credit Union reassured its customers, saying it has “no concerns,” and would continue regular business.
Federal prohibition of pot applies to medical users, as well as recreational.
More than two million people across the United States use marijuana medicinally, treating conditions ranging from anxiety to the sides effect of chemotherapy.