Biden news roundup: Cannabis stocks up, 280E implications, poll results and more October 7, 2022 By Griffin Coop The news was moving fast and furious yesterday after President Biden announced unprecedented steps toward cannabis decriminalization. We recorded the reactions of industry leaders, advocates, elected officials and opponents yesterday, and the reactions of the state’s gubernatorial nominees today. Here’s a roundup of news with more in-depth analyses of Biden’s announcement: MJBizDaily summarized Biden’s announcement to pardon federal simple marijuana possession offenses and to have his administration review marijuana’s status as a schedule I drug. Some industry leaders praised the announcement and encouraged cannabis banking reform as well. We asked the office of Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colorado), sponsor of the SAFE Banking Act, for the congressman’s reaction to yesterday’s announcement. U.S. Cannabis Council CEO Khadijah Tribble commended the news from the White House and called on the Senate to pass cannabis banking reform. “As the nation reckons with the wrongs of the past, it’s also time to look to the future,” Tribble said in a statement. “The Senate should pass the SAFE Banking Act,” she said, “to help ensure that the communities most impacted by cannabis prohibition can safely and gainfully participate in the burgeoning cannabis industry.” MJBizDaily also said Biden’s announcement sent marijuana stocks up Thursday, although they lost some of their gains today. The online publication reported that Biden’s announcement could result in marijuana stocks being listed on the New York Stock Exchange or the NASDAQ and could allow plant-touching companies to avoid the 280E tax penalty. In their research note, analysts from the Jefferies Group said rescheduling could allow U.S. plant-touching companies to uplist to larger stock exchange such as the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq. “Rescheduling, even if not descheduling, alongside SAFE Banking would, we believe, be enough to allow for uplistings and, in turn, significant inflows of new institutional capital,” the analysts wrote. CNN’s Stephen Collinson takes a look at the political consequences of Biden’s announcement. The move could energize Democrats for the upcoming midterm elections but it could also cause Republicans to view them as soft on crime, he says. In granting pardons for federal marijuana possession convictions, President Joe Biden is taking a historic step that is likely to be widely popular and could energize core Democratic constituencies just over a month from the midterm elections. It would change the lives of thousands of Americans convicted of marijuana possession, especially if governors follow the President’s lead. But it also risks playing into searing Republican attacks branding Democrats as soft on crime, which are rocking multiple key contests ahead of elections that could hand control of the Senate and the House of Representatives to the GOP. Marijuana Moment reported that a poll from YouGov found that 61% of people support Biden’s decision, 26% oppose it and 13% aren’t sure. According to the poll, 85% of Democrats, 59% of Independents and 49% of Republicans support the move. The poll also found that 62% of respondents want governors to follow suit at the state level as Biden encouraged yesterday. Marijuana Moment also has a roundup of responses from governors. Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson tweeted yesterday that he does not support Biden’s decision. Politico reports on how Biden’s pardons and consideration of rescheduling marijuana might actually play out.
