CONCORD, NH) – Smart Approaches to Marijuana Action (SAM Action) President Dr. Kevin Sabet, a former White House drug policy advisor to Presidents Obama, Bush, and Clinton, issued the following statement today in response to the New Hampshire State House voting to reject Senate-made changes, backed by Governor Chris Sununu, to legislation that would have legalized marijuana in the Granite State. The bill, in its varying forms, will fall to a conference committee that will pursue a consolidated bill.
“New Hampshire politicians should be ashamed. Their back-and-forth over marijuana legalization is like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. At the end of the day, both sides are going to be responsible for injecting more psychoactive drugs into communities, worsening public health and safety, and risking an influx of dangerous, illicit foreign drug dealers like those plaguing communities across Maine. The only reason residents might get a reprieve is because politicians can’t agree on how best to milk a supposed cash cow that won’t actually bring meaningful revenue to offset the costs of mental health services, law enforcement activity, and other consequences that have followed in every other state that has experimented with legalization.”