States rights be damned
by digby
This morning I speculated that the Obama administration might decide to sacrifice women's rights in exchange for its more populist rhetoric (Democrats simply refuse to make a straight liberal appeal)and that's still very possible. But this looks like an immediate offering to the social conservatives, whose loathing of personal freedom and pleasure extends beyond sex and even eclipses their fetishization of states' rights. They're going to love this:
Federal officials are warning California medical marijuana dispensaries they must shut down within 45 days or face criminal prosecution and having their property confiscated.
The state's four U.S. attorneys sent letters Wednesday and Thursday notifying at least 16 pot shops or their landlords that they are violating federal drug laws, even though medical marijuana is legal in California. The attorneys are to announce their coordinated crackdown at a Friday news conference.
The move marks an escalation of the conflict between the government and the medical marijuana industry.
That ought to please even the most ignorant culture warrior while angering virtually every liberal and libertarian in the state. I wonder how many social conservatives with vote for the president's re-election because of it?
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