“The $1 trillion spending bill that passed last week [and was signed into law by President Obama on Dec. 17, 2014] included a provision that blocks the Justice Department from spending any money to enforce a federal ban on growing or selling marijuana in the 23 states that have moved to legalize it for medical use. It marks a huge shift for Congress, which for years had sided with federal prosecutors in their battle with states over the liberalization of drug laws…
Representative Dana Rohrabacher, a Republican from California, was one of the authors of the medical-use provision, and he made the case to his colleagues on grounds that many conservatives can understand: states’ rights. In a statement, he said his amendment would force the federal government to ‘respect state sovereignty’ on the question of medical marijuana.”