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Published on August 30, 2019 by oz. staff

Cannabis is a hot topic in the U.S.

Laws are a hazy unfair patchwork across America — in some states, people are incarcerated for selling weed, and in others, people are getting rich off it.

That may change soon if it’s legalized federally.

With the 2020 election on the horizon, nearly all Democratic candidates have pledged their support for federal legalization.

Republican President Donald Trump has wavered on his support. Some speculate he will make cannabis legalization one of his key issues in the coming weeks and months.

Democratic presidential hopeful Andrew Yang has denounced the current marijuana laws in the strongest language yet: “stupid and racist.”

Yang says as president he would support the full legalization of cannabis and remove it from the controlled substances list.

He’d expunge federal convictions of cannabis-related use or possession offences, as well as identify non-violent drug offenders for probation and potential early release.

He is even selling limited weed swag:

Democratic frontrunners

The three Democrat front-runners differ wildly on cannabis reform:

Bernie Sanders has been the most vocal proponent of weed. He says if elected president he would use a presidential executive order to legalize it.

Elizabeth Warren has supported cannabis legalization at a CNN town hall, but her website only says she would rewrite laws to decriminalize cannabis.

Former vice president Joe Biden has been an enthusiastic general in the war on drugs. His current policy proposals have been harshly criticized.