Fun fact:
Biden has already pardoned thousands of people with marijuana convictions. Asking him to pardon EVERYONE when they may have had marijuana as a minor add-on to other criminal charges is a bit silly of an ask.
Biden doesn't run the DEA and can't force them to reschedule the drug. This is almost as dumb as the conservatives saying Biden needs to do something about border security then not being upset the Republicans have voted against every effort to do something about border security before it makes it to Biden's desk.
*the number of people in this country who think the President is a dictator and can literally just make up laws on his own is terrifying.
President is King of Oosa. He make law. Me talk about president. Me listen many podcast. Me give much opinion. Me not know state rep. Me vote every 4 year. Me mad at gas price. Bad president.
Democrats said their hands were tied for decades. But Biden's hands weren't tied when he got to support Netanyahu's genocide.
I don't know about anyone else, but I cannot trust that when a democrat says their hands are tied, it's actually the case, instead of just what democrats say about shit they don't want to do.
It was one of the campaign promises. Is it wrong to hold the president accountable for what they've said?
And even if he doesn't have the authority to force it on his own, he still had enough influence to make it happen. Obama gets a lot of credit for "Obamacare," even though it wouldn't have happened without majority support in both the house and senate.
Democrats when Democrats don't use their powers to do what they promised: "Um akshully it has to pass congress and guess what all dem republicans are blocking the bills so really biden's hands are tied and it's your fault for not voting enough"
Also Democrats: "lmao lets shove thousands of bombs to Israel and run security defense exercises against the Houthis without congressional approval"
Meanwhile Republicans: "executive privilege and unconstitutional orders go brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr"
I remember something around when he pardoned federal weed offenses related to him saving a bigger play on this for a date closer to the "attention span of voters who care about this" range
I don't know how likely it is but I know it'd be fucking hilarious to watch Republicans start blaming Trump losing on the weed vote.
Funny considering how many positions Biden has changed once he learned more about the issue. From bussing to economics and even health care he's shown the ability to put ideology aside to do what's right for the Americans people.
After the daily trump tantrums Biden has been 4 years of sensible non stories for the most part.
Phlubba might be referring to right wing youths who would hypothetically vote against Biden or not vote at all, cascading into a loss of US Democracy and eventually the fall of NATO and potentially democracy across the world as a whole. I don't think our situation is necessarily that bad, but it's definitely one of many possible futures.
Ah, that would be a metaphor. "Blaze it with their free unicorn pony" is supposed to represent any unrealistic and fundamentally flawed policy goal that the aforementioned hypothetical children would be willing to risk the end of democracy if they do not obtain. Again, I don't necessarily agree with their statement, but it at least is coherent enough.
Well since you're speaking for someone else, how about we just ask them who was closer to "what they meant" instead of just presuming with your blatant strawman?
When the fate of your entire legal system hinges on the cast of Pineapple Express showing up to vote for the correct candidate, democracy may have already ended and you just didn't notice.
Yes this is literally par for the course for every single presidential campaign in history.
They promise what they'll do. They don't say try to do because that's been tested in marketing and certainty sounds better. Nevertheless it's not Biden's fault his agenda for what he's been voted into office on is being blocked by the opposition for poor reasons.
The question isn't why isn't Biden doing this, the issue is why are Republicans blocking it and why aren't you trying to convince them and their supporters?
If I can't believe any of the good campaign promises from biden because everyone lies, why should we take the scary campaign promises of republicans seriously?
why should we take the scary campaign promises of republicans seriously?
Because the scary promises have support from those currently in power and are therefore much more likely to be implemented. Nice promises of change with support from the people are far less likely because the they face not only resistance from the opposing party, but the people are easily propagandized (by those currently in power) to not vote or vote against their interests.
I dunno being visibly queer under trump didn’t feel worse than under biden.
Where are you? I could mostly say the same thing living in a blue area, but I'm not willing to throw my LGBTQIA fam under the bus because I'm pissy about Democrats. Fascism is a silly threat being dangled by Biden, it's a risk you and I take of being thrown in the oven.
Let's review this as I'm seeing goalpost moving and circular reasoning present, forgetting curiously strange double-standards in where one directs their attention:
I highlight the fact that all Marijuana legalization, decriminalization initiatives, referendums have come under the Democratic party with Democratic states being the trailblazers
You ignore this fact.
You Pivot to why Biden is making promises he can't keep
I point to the fact that this is universal and the promise would be kept if it wasn't for Republican Obstruction
I ask why you concern yourself so much with Biden and not the obvious Republican obstructionists and their base whom you would be better served convincing in their comment threads.
Again, you ignore this inquiry.
You pivot to downplaying Trump's bad promises because they MIGHT be obstructed (rightfully so) by Democrats. (Forget the fact that one GOP/Trump Promise of overturning Roe came to fruition)
I thus this proves my point.
You, again, ignore this, then circle back to why Biden isn't trying harder. This is ostensibly victim-blaming. In other words, "Why isn't the hero of the story not doing MORE to overcome the villain!?"
It’s more like he’s bandwagoning something that now has popular support, without actually accomplishing much.
Yes, it's pretty normal that popular things are often adopted by Presidential candidates. Kind of a no-brainer, don't you think? As I said before: (1) It's popular, and (2) Biden needs those youth voters. If it's so popular, why isn't Trump doing it? Why are Republicans so opposed? This finally begs the question: Why WOULDN'T Biden support it if he could? The answer is: there is no valid reason, which means Republicans are largely to blame while the workarounds are cumbersome and even run the risk of wasting time in front of the conservative Supreme Court, jeopordizing future attempts at decriminalization.
Politicians change minds. Legalization has become far more popular in recent times. At the end of the day, like it or not, Democrats and Biden are still the best pathways toward decriminalization. We certainly won't get anything out of Trump and Republicans (which it strikes me as odd you tried to downplay Trump above).
At this point if it looks quacks and acts like a duck it probably is one. To bystanders reading this thread, this user demonstrates all classic signs of a right-wing operative intending to gaslight, sow defeatism, and wedge-drive Democrats.
I highlight the fact that all Marijuana legalization, decriminalization initiatives, referendums have come under the Democratic party with Democratic states being the trailblazers
You ignore this fact.
Because its not true. There's a Republican led bill introduced as recently as 2023.
Yet even so, you point to the edge-case exceptions while I point to the norm. For example, preceding the States Reform Act, Democrats beat them to the punch with the MORE Act, so your point is of such low-hanging fruit and the biggest exception -- NOT TO MENTION -- it literally won't be brought to the floor for a vote thanks to none other than (R) Mike Johnson...
Today, I am announcing three steps that I am taking to end this failed approach.
First, I am announcing a pardon of all prior Federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana. I have directed the Attorney General to develop an administrative process for the issuance of certificates of pardon to eligible individuals. There are thousands of people who have prior Federal convictions for marijuana possession, who may be denied employment, housing, or educational opportunities as a result. My action will help relieve the collateral consequences arising from these convictions.
Second, I am urging all Governors to do the same with regard to state offenses. Just as no one should be in a Federal prison solely due to the possession of marijuana, no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either.
Third, I am asking the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Attorney General to initiate the administrative process to review expeditiously how marijuana is scheduled under federal law. Federal law currently classifies marijuana in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, the classification meant for the most dangerous substances. This is the same schedule as for heroin and LSD, and even higher than the classification of fentanyl and methamphetamine – the drugs that are driving our overdose epidemic.
In effect, Biden has de-facto decriminalized Marijuana. Let me know if he prosecutes marijuana possession in legal states.
You play more hopscotch with reading than my daughter at the playground, lol.
Even if I did, it changes fundamentally nothing about the overarching conclusion. This isn't the gotcha you seem to believe it is. So says Confucius, when the wise man points at the moon, the fool looks at the finger.
There's nothing more to discuss, good sir. My arguments remain unchallenged. Like I said, I'm simply playing with the food that is this rhetorical discussion and referencing famous applicable adages. Sorry if you misconstrue this as attacks on the person. Certainly not my intention! I promise I'll refrain from such ad hominems!
This is an obvious sign of “my team” rather than logical thought.
You can make this argument once you respond to >80% of my points that were deflected.
Anyways, I'm pretty happy because my initial comment was heavily up-voted. I already won long ago.
Your attempt to wedge-drive fell on better-informed ears here and only reinvigorated the existing population here to turn out for BIden. Your objective failed spectacularly. Better luck next time.
Belligerent? Good sir/madam I'm merely reflecting the tone and sincerity I receive. Ethics of reciprocation is something I live by! If you find me to be belligerent, then one need merely look in the mirror.
I have yet to attack you rather than the content of your posts.
I can make an exception here though: you talk like someone on reddit athiesm subbredits back when it was front page. In this moment, you are euphoric.
Know that if your preferred candidates lose, contributions such as yours are suppressing turnout. Source: minority polls are tanking, and the only response seems to be to guilt trip rather than offer real solutions or representation.
Real solutions necessitate getting obstructionists out of the way. Minority polls are beginning to swing back as Democrats actually begin campaigning as of last month. I'm not too worried, for we know early polling yields no valid data and the concerns will be addressed.
Meanwhile Trump will be stuck in trial after trial as he attempts to grift more of his followers for every last dollar they've got to pay for his legal expenses as opposed to actively campaigning.
So again, yeah, I'm actually more confident going into this year than 2020 OR 2022 midterms :)
Trump is distracted and subject to numerous criminal lawsuits which a majority of independent voters say he's guilty of.
Despite Trump being in campaign mode since his previous term, he still can't out-raise Biden LOL.
Biden administration is at the helm, which means no attempts to "find votes" in Georgia, etc. LOL.
But true, there are classic hurdles to overcome, like the archaic slave-era Electoral College giving land a vote and disproportionately giving Bubba more voting weight (I can make those jokes; I'm from Appalachia); the fact that Republican states are trying their normal shenanigans of adding more hoops to vote (especially in lieu of conservatives gutting the VRA).
I just wish you demonstrated enough courage to show revealed true colors instead of hiding behind anonymity. Then we could have a real conversation if you'd just confess whom you really support. Crazy that your positions are so unpopular you can't even openly say it lol.
When the average Lemmy poster is the average member of the electorate, then you let me know. Not too concerned for tankies and right-wing wedge-drivers, if that's who you're referring to.
Put another way, by every classic metric Republicans would hold the economy over Democrats if Trump were in office, we're doing fantastic. GDP Up, Inflation coming down, Gas prices coming down, Stock Market all-time high recently, unemployment low, etc. etc.
Most importantly, pretty much every single metric is improved since — again — the previous two election cycles.
I find it amusing you always try to just reply to singular pieces of low-hanging fruit because you have fundamentally no argument consistently for >80% of the points I make; and of that which you do respond, it's quite easily picked apart.
Just checked your profile and you created 3 different communities and can't attract a single other monthly user due to how you behave online and your ridiculous viewpoints.
You are clearly not interested in discussion and prefer talking to yourself in circles.
LOL as if that has anything to do with the subject at hand. I haven't even attempted to advertise. You're trying so hard to find something and got: Nothing.
You ignored all this dude's salient points to argue about token legislation, then blocked him when he responded to each of your points with due diligence. You whined about posts for personal attacks, then you made THIS post. What a bigger man you are. Kudos. You should be lauded for your patience, you would never stoop to such a level. You haven't made an ad hominem since middle school debate club. I bet you're right proud of your reading comprehension skills and ability to research.
You can see edit timings - meaning this gentleman is just lying about "every post being edited". I edited the post where I mentioned it when it was posted to illustrate the point (Timestamp doubled, edit timing shows in parentheses)
In fact, you can see he edited his own posts more with quickly googled info.
You're already in the thick of it but this guy is peak debatelord, he is really not worth engaging unless you feel like counting arguments like they're points in a game.
Yeah you're right. I saw one of their bulleted posts that seemed genuine at first glance but the more we talk the more they expose their focus on "winning" rather than being realistic or truthful.
except you never addressed anything they said. youre acting just like trump cultists, where all evidence is fake anf theres always an excuse. its a bad look.
I'm really struggling to understand how you don't understand how this works. I have to conclude you're doing this in bad faith, given you implied your age is pretty high.
That they aren't promises but goals. The Biden administration (and about every administration) works towards everything they say they'll do, how much they get done is determined by their majority and the willingness of the opposition to work with them.
You've already been told this in an earlier reply by someone else.
They promise what they'll do. They don't say try to do because that's been tested in marketing and certainty sounds better.
President's aren't dictators, but they do have an amount of control of pushing for specific legislation, and the big "promises" are about trying to push this legislation.
Other promises can get stalled even if it's within the president's authority, like Biden's student debt relief was stalled by the Supreme Court.
Other promises can get stalled even if it's within the president's authority, like Biden's student debt relief was stalled by the Supreme Court.
I think the student relief is a good example of his team making an effort to keep the promise, rather than marijuana where they're barely trying.
When bidens relief was blocked, they immediately went back to the drawing board and started pushing alternative relief seriously.
He could be doing so much more for marijuana if he wanted to. Maybe he's saving it for right before the election which is terrible if so as there are lots of people being prosecuted and losing jobs today. Holding it for an election bump would further show his lack of sincerity in the promise or goal.
Well, I don't have a study backing me up, but in my experience, promising what you can't deliver often results in being called a liar.
I really don't know why "other candidates do it" would be an excuse. The whole pitch for voting for him is that he is supposed to be better than the other candidates. Seems like whataboutism.
It's not really about how politics work. It is about how human minds work. The fact that making empty promises and then excuses is more effective than being honest shows one of the reasons why democracy isn't a good system (although it may currently be the least bad).
And just accepting the lies probably makes it worse.
You might as well just not vote at all because not a single president will ever keep every campaign promise they make. Ever. You don't have to like it but that's reality and the only reason to be mad about it for one specific candidate over another is personal bias.
Obviously everyone should vote but unless you're new to all of this you should already know to pick your battles. If campaign promises weren't kept you should research it and know why before you complain about it.
I get what you're saying on principle, but the reality is that the world does not work like that. There's a reason populism is often a quick way to get to power, because you just promise whatever people want to hear so you could be elected. People don't vote based on logic, people vote based on emotion, which means people don't consider what is realistic, they consider what speaks to them.
Is his campaign promising things he doesn’t have the power to do?
A president can do almost NOTHING unilaterally. What they're promising you is what they'll support if it makes it to their desk. This is how checks and balances work... if you want to vote for someone who has sworn to be as shitty as possible because the guy who swore to do things you want can't just snap his fingers and make it happen, I guess nobody can stop you...
What you're finding is that the Democratic party is still interested in a functioning government where people don't just vote the party line like a borg - which results in more difficulty passing legislation. Unfortunately, "both sides same" isn't remotely accurate which you're finding out.
Idk? What point is being made? That Democrats took a modest aesthetic step toward fixing a problem they helped create? A problem that runs much deeper than the scheduling of drugs and a problem that destroyed entire communities of color?
I'm not interested in engaging in a debate with you, I just think it's important to recognize the depth of the issues being discussed and be skeptical of the accomplishments being touted during an election year.
We're in a thread about a concern-troll criticizing Biden for not doing MORE on Marijuana decriminalization.
I point to the fact that literally all Marijuana legalization efforts have stemmed from Democrats.
And since we know Republicans will do nothing on this and in fact take us backwards in most cases, there really isn't a further point to be made.
Thus, within the given context, calling Democrats' action on Marijuan legalization, decriminalization, and outright pardoning of offenders a "modest aesthetic" is gross euphemism.
It is, of course, conveniently never enough with folks; and to that I point to the famed adage, "never left perfection get in the way of progress."
Biden hasn't done enough, though. For the amount of damage criminalization has done, tossing out a few pardons does comparatively nothing for those lives ruined by being pressured into pleas under threats of federal criminal possession charges, the lives of children who went without their fathers and entire neighborhoods destroyed by over policing, all of which was caused by laws Biden himself wrote and sponsored. Especially when he has opposed legalization legislation proposed by his own party
But that's 'not relevant' to someone who's only point is essentially "it's better than Republicans 🤷♂️"
Biden can't do more. History aside, he has shifted his stance since. However, he is not a dictator.
The solution is pretty simple, really: Vote Democrat; vote out Republicans — then watch Biden be able to pass what has already been introduced by Democrats.
So yes, it really is as simple as, "Democrats are FAR better than Republicans."
After all, when it comes to decriminalization, I can now smoke weed if I want to — thank a Democratic liberal.
Asking how old someone is completely defeats the purpose. We've seen how boomers mishandled things and pulled the ladders up behind them so let's not pretend that being old and remembering 1994 "like it was pretty recent" (it wasn't) makes your opinion in any way superior.
It's relevant and recent when the majority of the legislators who passed the law are still in congress
We’ve seen how boomers mishandled things and pulled the ladders up behind them
That's exactly my point. We're still living in the reality of laws passed by boomers - hell, we're still being governed by them. That reality doesn't just go away when the boomers acknowledge they fucked it up, they have to actually fix their shit.
You're not allowed to talk about the '94 Crime Bill. You're certainly not allowed to talk about the War on Drugs or the privatization of the modern prison industry.
Nobody ask where Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Ted Kennedy, and Tip O'Neal were when any of this shit got passed.
Absolutely and under no circumstances should you google who gave Strom Thurmond's eulogy.
The legalization of cannabis in my state was brought about by activists, not Democratic Party members, and was passed by the public, which is made up of a majority of unaffiliated voters. Our Democratic governor vehemently opposed the measure. He did implement it when it passed, which Republican legislatures and governors have not done when similar bills were passed by the public in Republican states, though.
Red states are poised to increasingly embrace weed. Ohio is the latest, becoming the 24th state to legalize marijuana for recreational use via a voter referendum. This follows successful efforts in the past two years in Montana and Missouri. Fourteen states have legalized marijuana for medical use only.
This is correct. The HHS recommended rescheduling, and the DEA hasn’t responded to the recommendation. They’re probably concerned it’ll affect their budget having fewer criminals to pursue.
Tying law enforcement funding to their arrests is just the most idiotic idea and I am shocked at how few Congress folks have been speed trapped if they actually can't see why
In late 2022, President Joe Biden issued an executive order directing HHS to review marijuana’s status as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, while giving a recommendation on whether it should be rescheduled. After a roughly year-long review, HHS sent a letter to the DEA in August requesting that they move marijuana to Schedule III.
They had their own review and recommended that Cannabis be moved from Schedule I(Drugs with no medicinal value and a high risk of harm/abuse - heroin,LSD,etc) to Schedule III(Drugs with low risk of harm/abuse and clear medicinal value - cough syrup,Ketamine,etc).
The Controlled Substances Act which established all our current drugs laws states that ONLY the DEA has the power to ultimately change the classification of any controlled substance. If the DEA does not feel inclined to change this, then nothing will happen with the recommendation. Biden can always play political hardball since the head of the agency is an appointed position, but it would still need to be confirmed by the Senate in the end.
I wouldn't expect to see a drop to schedule III, but I think in the next five or so year we may see it become schedule II. Progress is progress I guess.
Exactly. He could issue an executive order, but if the DEA doesn’t agree before the order expires, it would be far more of devastating to the industry as a whole.
He literally did issue an executive order, in late 2022. The DEA seem to have their thumbs up their arses though.
Edit: It seems likely that I was incorrect here. I was going off of the article linked in the top level comment (https://themarijuanaherald.com/2024/04/a-complete-timeline-of-the-deas-marijuana-scheduling-review-prompted-by-department-of-health-recommendation/ ) which states that Biden did issue an executive order. It appears that the article was wrong, but more than that, I was wrong to assert this so confidently when I had only skim read an article and didn't follow up on its sources (plus I'm not American, so I should be more mindful of checking things if I'm commenting on US government related stuff.
The DEA seem like a large part of the problem and there may well be more that Biden could be doing to move this along, but I don't know enough to speculate.
I don't have a link because it appears that you're right and I was mistaken. I've edited my comment to reflect that, I apologise for speaking so confidently on something that actually, I wasn't sure of. Thanks for challenging me on it — realising I was wrong has made me feel like a bit of an arse right now, but I'd rather feel that than be blissfully ignorant and spreading misinformation. I appreciate the time you spent to fact check me.
It’s all good. Happens to the best of us. If there were an executive order, I’d like to know about it. They’re temporary proclamations, which are good for buying time to get proper legislation in place. If he had changed the classification with an EO, the dispensaries would invest in the new liberty. If the DEA failed to come though before the EO expired, the dispensaries would be in violation of the law. They’re really only to be used during a crisis when proper legislation is sure to follow.
Schedule III(Drugs with low risk of harm/abuse and clear medicinal value - cough syrup,Ketamine,etc).
The same cough syrup that contains codeine, an opiate and creates a very strong physical addiction? The same that killed Juice WRLD and Pimp C? The one that almost killed Lil Nas and Macklemore?
The fact that marijuana is right now considered as more harmful than this and should be lowered to this kind of level is just fucked up
Before one of OP's other posts on this topic was removed as misinformation, I asked under that post what Biden could possibly have done aside from pardoning all federal convictions for possession, requesting the DEA to reschedule marijuana, and introducing a bill for full federal legalization which the Republicans defeated (all three of which happened).
Crickets man. (I actually learned since then that it's a little more complex -- it actually seems like maybe Biden was opposed to the full legalization bill that Schumer was pushing, and there was definitely some level of Democratic opposition in the senate. So maybe that piece of the criticism is legit, IDK, but OP never brought that stuff up to me when I asked what Biden should do.)
That conversation was actually the exact point that I became confident that OP's just here to shit on Biden and specifically Biden for whatever reason, and any concordance that emerges between what he's saying and the truth is purely accidental, and he knows it.
(Also, fun fact Matt Gaetz switched sides to join with 2 other House Republicans to vote for weed legalization.)
Honestly I kind of like that the states are going back to having radically different systems. That was the way it was supposed to be -- like if you think weed should be legal, or illegal, then try it out, and everyone can watch it in practice and see how it works.
I don't like that it's so polarized to only two big centers of gravity and one of them is Naziism but the idea of it being a variety seems like more of the idea of what the US was supposed to be.
States' rights in this particular case led to marijuana legalization a bunch of places which was pretty far from what the Republicans wanted
And a bunch of Democrats have been fighting for full federal legalization for a few years now. I'm aware there's a mythology that it's every Democrat's fault that 99% of Republicans voted in lock-step against it, which meant that little slivers of Democratic opposition were able to defeat it, but I'm not convinced by that logic
I'm aware that some Republicans use "states' rights" as a fig leaf for their awful policies but how on Earth are you trying to apply it in that way to this particular issue
That's because you didn't read the single sentence I wrote.
States’ rights in this particular case led to marijuana legalization a bunch of places which was pretty far from what the Republicans wanted
I said nationwide. You responded with state level policy.
And a bunch of Democrats have been fighting for full federal legalization for a few years now.
Sure they have.
I’m aware that some Republicans use “states’ rights” as a fig leaf for their awful policies but how on Earth are you trying to apply it in that way to this particular issue
Because Democrats are content to let Republicans curtail rights for good people in red states, as long as they don't have to worry in blue states.
Because Democrats are content to let Republicans curtail rights for good people in red states, as long as they don't have to worry in blue states.
Yes, I'm aware of the narrative. I'm saying it doesn't match reality (in this case -- as a general statement about the Democrats of the Nancy Pelosi and Hillary Clinton brand, I fully agree with it + how it's responsible for a lot of the lack of support for Democrats from the people who've been getting screwed).
I don't really know how to lay out my evidence for my statement other than what I've already done... if you're just planning on repeating the narrative back at me, IDK what to tell you.
I don’t really know how to lay out my evidence for my statement other than what I’ve already done…
All you did was divert from national policy to state policy and say that Democrats are totally working on it on the national level without anything to back it up.
Dude, why is everything a big fuckin argument with you. Here's what I said:
what Biden could possibly have done aside from pardoning all federal convictions for possession, requesting the DEA to reschedule marijuana, and introducing a bill for full federal legalization
I actually learned since then that it's a little more complex -- it actually seems like maybe Biden was opposed to the full legalization bill that Schumer was pushing, and there was definitely some level of Democratic opposition in the senate. So maybe that piece of the criticism is legit, IDK, but OP never brought that stuff up to me when I asked what Biden should do.
That's my opinion on the federal level. There are little breadcrumbs of things in there like "the full legalization bill that Schumer was pushing" that you can look up if you want to learn more about the facts behind it. You can form your own opinions, and I'm fine with that.
If you're not interested in learning, and just interested in us shouting "YES IT IS" "NO IT ISN'T" "YES IT IS" at each other, I'll pass.
(Actually - if you want to learn about the different legalization / decriminalization bills, and what the differences between them were / how they each fared and which ones if any Biden actually supported / things like that, and then tell me, then that'd be great, because I started reading but it was complex and I didn't completely sort it out. But if it's all going to be colored by this axiom you seem to operate under that everything Biden does is automatically a betrayal and there's no need to learn anything more then I am not interested.)
I think what my attitude boils down to is that the Democratic Party has fundamentally earned my distrust, and that has only worsened since Biden took office.
After Biden didn't fire the parliamentarian in order to get the minimum wage hike passed, I cannot trust that his hands are tied when his supporters say they are. As far as I'm concerned, Democrats tie their own hands. When it's something that centrist Democrats want to do, his hands are utterly free.
You are taking Democrats at their word when they say they are powerless. I don't do that.
Why, what happened with the minimum wage hike? Why do you say that firing the parliamentarian would have led to it passing?
You are taking Democrats at their word when they say they are powerless. I don't do that.
Did you miss the part up above where I specifically said that I agree with your assessment, as applied to most of the Democrats (the Nancy Pelosi brand)?
Why do you say that firing the parliamentarian would have led to it passing?
The parliamentarian could have been replaced with one that would have accepted that the minimum wage could be raised via reconciliation.
Did you miss the part up above where I specifically said that I agree with your assessment, as applied to most of the Democrats (the Nancy Pelosi brand)?
I didn't miss the bit where you acted like Biden has done all he can do about cannabis.
I didn't miss the bit where you acted like Biden has done all he can do about cannabis.
Sorry, I am done with this conversation. You can scroll back up and see multiple times where I say it seems to me that criticism of Biden / Democrats on aspects of this issue seems legit (or possibly legit) to me. If you are so eager to argue that you're just going to tell me I "acted like" I believe something I'm saying the opposite of, just so you can keep on having an argument about it, I am even less interested in that than I was uninterested before.
what Biden could possibly have done aside from pardoning all federal convictions for possession, requesting the DEA to reschedule marijuana, and introducing a bill for full federal legalization
This is you acting like Biden has done everything he can, like I said. You keep reinforcing my decision to never expect honesty from you.
Bro who fuckin hurt you and made you expect that people go on the internet and just lie about what they believe as a fakeout to trick other people on the internet
In the very next sentence, after I quoted myself saying that from some time ago, I said:
(I actually learned since then that it's a little more complex -- it actually seems like maybe Biden was opposed to the full legalization bill that Schumer was pushing, and there was definitely some level of Democratic opposition in the senate. So maybe that piece of the criticism is legit, IDK
I am not lying. I am not maliciously misrepresenting what I believe. I am not deliberately trying to engage in a conversation from a point of view other than the one I actually hold. I 100% honestly do not know why you think a person would do that, or how common it is on the internet, but it is not what I am doing for any reason whatsoever.
I don't see the point of talking if you're going to tell me what I believe, and then why the imaginary viewpoint you've assigned to me is wrong. I don't need to be involved for that process to take place.
Decades of being lied to by my own party followed by years of being called everything from a fascist to a tankie for daring to be less than enthusiastic about it.
I looked into this and found this legal sidebar somewhat informative.
In classic Biden/dem fashion, while it’s true he has done something that could lead towards delivering on his campaign promise, it’s comically little and falls far short of his full power. Why hasn’t he tried issuing executive orders to legalize or reschedule and force opponents of legalization to crawl out of the woodwork in a lawsuit? Alternatively, the DEA is part of the executive branch. He could immediately replace directors there with those who will implement this policy - why hasn’t this been done?
Biden literally threw up his hands and said “awww but my allies in Congress won’t let me do it.” Disingenuous at best.
In classic Biden/dem fashion, while it’s true he has done something that could lead towards delivering on his campaign promise, it’s comically little and falls far short of his full power.
This would be completely accurate if you took the "Biden/" part out of it. I know it's a popular myth that Biden is part of this pattern, but in actuality he did:
Pass a climate bill that targets 40% reduction in emissions by 2030
Forgave around $144 billion in student loan debt
Boosted income for the poorest wage earners by a huge amount (outpacing even the pretty historic inflation of the last couple of years as follow-on effects from Covid took hold)
Raised corporate tax significantly to pay for all of the above
He tried to do more on all fronts, but it's far from comical and the fact that he got that much done over stiff Republican resistance is to me pretty fuckin impressive. Example -- he tried to forgive half a trillion dollars of student loan debt through some direct executive action, and it went to the Supreme Court and they told him no.
Like I said though, I think marijuana is actually one isolated instance where that criticism that he wasn't actually trying to support full legalization / wasn't doing as much as he could to get it done might be halfway warranted. But to me that's more of an exception to his usual pattern.
I mean it's the classic strategy. The reason everyone accuses them of doing fucking nothing is because there's always a throw it to congress mentality, then congress is inevitably deadlocked by like two guys because of the way the system is set up, and then whenever it isn't deadlocked, suddenly there's some other internal opposition, until it can be deadlocked again in the next 15 minutes. People at this point want other more theoretical measures enacted, like when people were talking about putting abortion clinics on federal land or in national parks. I don't even think stuff like that would be a bad play. Even if it wasn't necessarily successful, it'd do a hell of a lot to show that there's something more being done than the normal state of affairs, which is exactly what people want.
Precisely. We deserve someone who will fight for us, and do everything possible to enact what they believe in (and what we voted for) even if it’s not the ideal solution. This milquetoast bullshit just isn’t going to get the votes anymore, sorry establishment dems but after 40 years enough is enough.
For one administration after another, all we get is “that’s just no longer a priority,” “we’ll leave it to Congress for a bipartisan compromise,” “the senate parliamentarian won’t let us,” “Manchin and Sinema aren’t actually democrats,” or my personal favorite: “we can’t because the republicans will yell at us.” This is wrong and it’s absolutely infuriating. It’s made 10x worse when all we ever hear about progressive ideas is “well how you gonna pay for that?!” The answer to this is glaringly obvious - we pay for it the same way we pay for tax cuts for the rich, or funds to bomb and kill brown children in the middle east. And just like those initiatives, we make it happen no matter what it takes - and if you don’t like it, you can vote us out of office come November.
No one politician has the power to do anything directly, really. That's how the US system of government works. It's fundemantal to how it operates that no one politician can promise to singlehandedly do anything. So, since everyone understands that, they say what they intend to do.
So many children are just learning about politics and don’t yet understand that things normally don’t just happen when a president doesn’t abuse executive orders
Is this something that he can just make happen with an executive order or does he need approval from the rest of the government? Can't really be upset about things that he can't simply snap a finger and make happen.
