Dear Senators Kirk and Durbin:
I write as a concerned citizen of the State of Illinois, and am deeply opposed to the Senate confirming Sen. Jeff Sessions for Attorney General.
I strongly urge you to vote against confirming Sen. Sessions for the important and powerful position of Attorney General. His position on a host of issues makes clear that he is not fit to be our new Attorney General. Now, more than ever, we deserve better and can do better.
Further, on a more personal level, I strongly support the rights of citizens to utilize cannabis for medicinal purposes, and applaud the states that have taken steps to regulate its use. The results of the recent election and polls make clear that nationally an overwhelming majority of US citizens support the legalization of cannabis, particularly with respect to medical cannabis.
Sen. Sessions has made clear that his prohibitionist position on medical cannabis is antiquated and out of touch with the recent, evolving research which demonstrates that cannabis is helpful in treating a variety of medical conditions. His recent statements also make clear that he is out of touch with the vast majority of the country's opinion which supports a sensible drug policy, particularly with respect to cannabis. Unless Sen. Sessions unequivocally recognizes the validity of, and would vow to respect, state-compliant medical cannabis programs, such as we have in Illinois, he is unfit to serve as our Attorney General. This would include his honoring the DOJ's so-called "Cole Memorandum" of 2013 and Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment, limiting the use of federal funds from enforcing federal law against a state compliant medical cannabis program.
Please do not vote to confirm an Attorney General who will roll back years of progress towards a sensible drug policy and make criminals out of medical patients who are attempting to obtain relief from their symptoms and improve the quality of lives by incorporating cannabis into their treatment programs. This is an issue of increasing importance to me and is, and will, remain a factor in future elections, particularly in the 2017 and 2021 elections.
