FRANKFORT, Ky. – U.S. Senator Rand Paul has come out in support of Kentucky’s proposed medical marijuana bill.
If House Bill 166 is passed, residents with certain medical conditions will be permitted to use medical marijuana to treat their ailments.
“I believe decisions on how to regulate cannabis should be left to state governments,” Paul said in a statement. “I support passage of HB 166. I believe that patients suffering from medical illness should have the right to try cannabis.”
Paul’s statement was supported and tweeted out by Secretary of State Alison Grimes, a supporter of the bill.
In response to letters from State Sen. Albert Robinson, Sen. @RandPaul has indicated he supports #HB166 – #MedicalCannabis!
It's time to act! #kyga18 pic.twitter.com/j9nr8nRXja
— Alison L. Grimes (@KySecofState) March 9, 2018
Under House Bill 166, qualifying conditions for medical marijuana include cancer, IBS, AIDS, PTSD and several others.
It is unclear if the bill will be enacted. The House Judiciary Commitee declined to vote on the bill recently but vowed to take it up before the legislative session concludes at hte end of April.
Paul, considered to be a libertarian, has long advocated for marijuana reform especially as it relates to criminal justice.
“Look, the last two presidents could conceivably have been put in jail for their drug use, and I really think, you know, look what would have happened, it would have ruined their lives. They got lucky, but a lot of poor kids, particularly in the inner city, don’t get lucky. They don’t have good attorneys, and they go to jail for these things and I think it’s a big mistake” Paul said while campaigning for the Republican nomination for president in 2015 according to Bustle.
After U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions opted to rescind the Cole Memo in January, Paul came out against the decision.
“I support legislation currently in effect that prohibits the DOJ (Department of Justice) from spending any money to interfere with state medical cannabis laws,” he said.
Paul has also been a supporter of legalizing industrial hemp farming in Kentucky.
“I don’t like the idea that we would have to ask somebody in Washington for permission to feed the root of the plant to a chicken or a cow. I think things that God gave us and that grow on Earth really the government shouldn’t be preventing you from feeding them to your livestock,” Paul said according to WKU.
