Leading cannabis home gardening advocate Jim Miller of Sativa Cross and the Coalition for Medical Marijuana of NJ (CMMNJ) compared NJ Senate President Nick Scutari (D-22-Union) to President Donald Trump (R) for blocking progress.
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Scutari, Trump, and No Kings
“Preventing (home gardening legalization bill) S1758 from taking the first step in NJ’s due legislative process of a bill becoming law since the day he became Senate President is rather autocratic, kind of like a King,” Miller argued.
Eight million people in all 50 states marched in the recent No Kings protests nationwide, denouncing Trump.
“Maybe time for a ‘NO NJ SENATE KINGS’ rally?” he asked.
A lot of liberals and progressives in Jersey might enjoy that. Especially since it is budget season, which usually leads to at least one protest by the end of June.
Sherill and Cannabis Home Gardening
“Cannabis patients’ expectations of Governor (Mikie) Sherrill (D) finally finding out for them why her Senate President has not allowed Senate Health Committee Chairman Joe Vitale to post S1758 for an initial hearing have thus far not materialized,” Miller wrote.
“This does NOT match up with statements she made in support of medical cannabis homegrow before being elected. She either does not know about the blockade, or she doesn’t care,” he declared.
“Currently, her culpable deniability of this problem remains intact and in play, allowing her to say, ‘I’m sorry I wasn’t aware of the extent of this problem,” he said.
“No correspondence to her office (that I am aware of) concerning this problem has received a reply. Patients could use a little help with this. Can anybody show that she IS aware of the extent of this issue?” Miller asked.
“Is anyone else willing to try, and then be denied a return email as well? Revoking Gov. Sherrill’s culpable deniability by someone being able to prove that she is aware of the extent of the problem is the next step in achieving a structured path to allowing S1758 to be heard in committee,” he said.
“Somewhere around 4000 NJ registered medical cannabis patients have died waiting for this bill to be heard,” Miller claimed.
“And Scutari?? “How many deaths will it take till he knows that too many people have died while he leaves medical cannabis patients blowing in the wind?” he asked rhetorically, referencing a Bob Dylan song.
NJ Politics and Cannabis
Sherrill has been silent on cannabis issues since taking office in January. She did sign into law an infused/intoxicating hemp regulation bill recently, without publicly commenting on the matter that Scutari pushed.
Her Attorney General, Jennifer Davenport, was questioned greatly during her NJ Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on cannabis before being confirmed unanimously. Davenport seemed to join the Senator in their eagerness for a crackdown on underground legacy cannabis and smoke shop businesspeople. Notably, she has experience working for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
But in Jersey, just because the NJ Senate President is a Democrat and the Governor is as well does not mean as much as you’d think. During his first term, former Governor Phil Murphy (D) and former NJ Senate President Sweeney (D-7-Gloucester) fought greatly, which impeded Murphy’s agenda, which included adult-use cannabis legalization.
So even if Sherrill is aware of the issue, she has a finite amount of leverage with Scutari.
Sherrill is in a honeymoon phase now, with many enjoying her actions against Trump, which will likely help with the legislature.
In stark contrast, Murphy never endorsed home gardening legalization while still being the Garden State’s most pro-cannabis Governor.
Sherrill endorsed both adult-use and medical cannabis home gardening legalization twice. She did so during the competitive June Democratic primary election and November general election on CBS last year.
Technically, Scutari endorsed home gardening legalization of one plant on an NJ CannaBusiness Association (NJCBA) webinar last year.
Medical Home Gardening Legalization Statewide Support
Senators Vin Gopal (D-11-Monmouth) and Troy Singleton (D-7- Burlington) have made great progress gathering support for their bill S. 1758, legalizing the home gardening of 8 cannabis plants for medical patients.
It has statewide, bipartisan co-sponsorship support from Senators Declan O’Scanlon (R-13-Monmouth), Patrick Diegnan (D-18-Middlesex), Anthony M. Bucco (R-25-Morris), Shirley K. Turner (D-15-Mercer), Robert W. Singer (R-30-Ocean), Andrew Zwicker (D-16-Somerset), Gordon Johnson (D-37-Bergen), Joe Vitale (D-19-Middlesex), and Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D-5-Camden).
Its companion in the Assembly is A 1674. It is sponsored by Assemblymember Verlina Reynolds-Jackson (D-15-Mercer) and co-sponsored by Kevin P. Egan (D-17-Middlesex).
