The federal Controlled Substances Act contains a blatant lie about cannabis, e.g, that it has no known medicinal benefit, and hence, it is listed as a Schedule I drug.

That’s obvious baloney factually. Moreover, more potent drugs–opioids (such as morphine), cocaine, etc.–are listed as Schedule II drugs, meaning they are proscribed for recreational use under federal law but may be used for proper medical purposes.

Marijuana should be in the same category, as I have written repeatedly.

Now, a bipartisan bill (Paul, R-KY, Booker D-NJ, Gillibrand D-NY) has been filed to do just that. S-683 would reclassify MJ into a Schedule II drug. It would also permit scientific study of marijuana’s medical potentials.

The reclassification of marijuana and opening the door to scientific research on its potential medicinal benefits are long overdue. Who could oppose and on what possible grounds?

More controversially, the bill would require the Feds to respect state’s rights with regard to enforcement of drug laws around marijuana. In other words, the Feds would be bound by state law.

Me? I’d take that part out. I think the Feds have a strong place in establishing uniform drug enforcement throughout the country. I don’t think the states should be allowed to tie federal hands, thereby creating a hodgepodge system in which federal laws are enforced in some states but not in others.

My wife, the syndicated San Francisco Chronicle columnist, Debra J. Saunders, has a good, and far detailed, column today on the bill (here is the link), arguing that it should please conservatives as well as liberals. She opines that Senator Dianne Feinstein may hold the key to passage and hopes that President Obama can “evolve” on this issue.

Time for a change. In our system, a bad law should be changed, not ignored. It is long past time to reclassify Marijuana out of Schedule I. S-683 should be modified, as I described above, and passed into law.