Fortunately for New Jersey, we now have a 21st century governor who wears Allbirds shoes, uses social media and is totally comfortable texting constituents. Despite an old-thinking legislature, Governor Phil Murphy keeps pushing his agenda that recognizes the need to increase the state’s tax revenue and finally do something about mass transit and the state’s crumbling infrastructure. Legalizing cannabis helps accomplish these things and, at the same time, reduces the burden on the courts and the jails for a minor criminal offense that should never have been a criminal charge in the first place.
On the national level, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.Y.) is one of the few politicians who hasn’t been afraid to speak out in favor of cannabis legalization. He has introduced national legislation that would decriminalize marijuana across the country. The Marijuana Justice Act would remove marijuana from the list of controlled substances and, thereby, make it legal on the federal level.
New Jersey state legislators, particularly the Democrats, should follow Murphy’s and Booker’s examples and lead the nation into the 21st century. Those who don’t support legalization of cannabis label themselves as out of touch with their constituency and show that they are sadly out of date with American life.