While a Republican senator continues to oppose legalizing marijuana, he is upset about federal guidelines being revised that may recommend Americans to drink less alcohol.
Tom Cotton, R-AR, is adamantly defending the legality of alcohol as SAMHSA works on finalizing updated dietary guidelines for Americans. This will include a study, some believe will suggest further reductions in alcohol consumption.
The only reason to spend taxpayers’ money on alcohol ban studies [former President Joe Biden] The Washington Reporter reported that he said, “His cronies and himself were kicked out of the White House.”
The study being conducted by SAMHSA’s Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking is not intended to impose a “ban” on alcohol. The study is intended to update data about the risks associated with alcohol consumption. Findings could then be included in the 2025 Dietary Guidelines For Americans.
Cotton’s comments reflect a policy disconnect which has for many years frustrated marijuana reformers who have argued that since alcohol is now legal and regulated then it is absurd to still prohibit cannabis, as many studies demonstrate that the drug is safer, and can be therapeutically helpful, in many cases.
It’s interesting that the senator, who suggested that banning alcohol would be a waste of taxpayer dollars, doesn’t think the same about the millions spent on arrests, prosecutions and imprisonments of cannabis users. Cotton is opposed to the legalization of cannabis, even though an initiative was placed on Arkansas’ ballot for 2022.
In 2018, he stated that while he respects the decision of the voters in his home state to decriminalize medical marijuana, the federal government shouldn’t do so. Then in 2023 he harshly criticised then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY), for introducing criminal justice measures he wanted added to a bill bipartisan on marijuana banking. Schumer was accused of supporting “letting drugs traffickers out from prison.”
Cotton is not the first senator in the United States to have a contradictory position regarding alcohol and marijuana. This was made clear by the SAMHSA’s study. Ted Cruz, a staunch opponent of cannabis prohibition and a senator from Texas in the 2023 election cycle said federal officials could “kiss my arse” if it was decided to limit alcohol consumption to just two drinks per week.
What is with liberals wanting to take over every aspect of our lives? He made this statement during an Interview with Newsmax.
Cruz, to highlight the criticism of his remarks, took a swig on air of Shiner Bock Beer, brewed here in California, with a group behind him who appeared to be drinking their own beer.
A separate study funded by the federal government on cannabis and alcohol consumption, released this month, found that those who smoked marijuana before drinking alcohol consumed less alcohol in subsequent months. They also reported fewer alcohol cravings.
The study followed another survey analysis published in March that showed three in four young adults reported substituting cannabis for alcohol at least once per week—a “fast-emerging” trend that reflects the “rapid expansion” of the hemp product marketplace.
The findings were largely consist with a growing body of studies indicating that cannabis—whether federally legal hemp or still-prohibited marijuana—is being utilized as a substitute for many Americans amid the reform movement.
An earlier survey from YouGov, for example, found that a majority of Americans believe regular alcohol consumption is more harmful than regular marijuana use. In spite of the risks, many more adults say they prefer alcohol consumption to cannabis.
A separate poll released in January determined that more than half of marijuana consumers say they drink less alcohol, or none at all, after using cannabis.
Yet another survey—which was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and released in December—found that young adults are nearly three times more likely to use marijuana than alcohol on a daily or near-daily basis.
That poll provided more granular, age-specific findings than a similar report published last year, finding that more Americans overall smoke marijuana on a daily basis than drink alcohol every day—and that alcohol drinkers are more likely to say they would benefit from limiting their use than cannabis consumers are.
A separate study published in the journal Addiction last year similarly found that there are more U.S. adults who use marijuana daily than who drink alcohol every day.
In December, BI also published the results of a survey indicating that substitution of cannabis for alcohol is “soaring” as the state-level legalization movement expands and relative perceptions of harm shift. In that same poll, a significant number of Americans said that they also substituted marijuana for painkillers and cigarettes.
Another BI analysis from last September projected that the expansion of the marijuana legalization movement will continue to post a “significant threat” to the alcohol industry, citing survey data that suggests more people are using cannabis as a substitute for alcoholic beverages such a beer and wine.
Yet another study on the impact of marijuana consumption on people’s use of other drugs that was released in December suggested that, for many, cannabis may act as a less-dangerous substitute, allowing people to reduce their intake of substances such as alcohol, methamphetamine and opioids like morphine.
A study out of Canada, where marijuana is federally legal, found that legalization was “associated with a decline in beer sales,” suggesting a substitution effect.
These analyses are in line with recent data from other surveys that looked more widely at American attitudes towards marijuana and alcohol. For example, a Gallup survey found that respondents view cannabis as less harmful than alcohol, tobacco and nicotine vapes—and more adults now smoke cannabis than smoke cigarettes.
A separate survey released by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and Morning Consult last June also found that Americans consider marijuana to be significantly less dangerous than cigarettes, alcohol and opioids—and they say cannabis is less addictive than each of those substances, as well as technology.
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