A Republican congresswoman who has proposed a federal bill to legalise cannabis has spoken out about her experience using cannabis to combat depression.
Nancy Mace, a republican politician from South Carolina appeared on Fox Business’s ‘Kennedy’ show to talk about the bill which would legalise cannabis but would also focus on veteran access.
It also includes expungement for non-violent cannabis crimes and imposes a revenue tax that would support reinvestment into communities hurt by the war on drugs.
The bill titled the States Reform Act would federally legalise and tax cannabis has been proposed ahead of competing Democrat proposed bills. While the bill was originally proposed in July, Mace shared her story after officially filing the State Reform Act in November.
At the end of the discussion, host, Lisa “Kennedy” Montgomery asked the congresswoman if she smoked cannabis.
Nancy replied: “When I was 16, I was raped. I was given prescription medication that made the feelings I had of depression worsen, and I stopped taking those prescription drugs and I turned to cannabis for a brief period of time in my life.”
She added that she believed her experience with cannabis made her more sympathetic to veterans who may use cannabis for conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
I had the chance to speak with #cannabis freedom fighter @RepNancyMace about her latest bill to #freetheweed! #Kennedy pic.twitter.com/akifdJ3QvE
— Kennedy (@KennedyNation) November 17, 2021
Bill protection for veterans
The congresswoman explained that the new bill is “particularity protective of veterans, ensuring they are protected, not discriminated against and that the US Department of Veteran Affairs can utilise cannabis for their PTSD.”
She added: “When I talk to vets and I see that pain, it hurts because I felt that pain before in my life. Veteran suicide, we see every single day.”
One other provision in the bill is that cannabis would be under the Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) instead of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA would have some involvement similar to its current control over the alcohol industry.
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Bill history
Mace has already won an exception for rape and incest victims in a fatal fetal heartbeat bill. She mentioned her history when it came to proposing that bill in 2019.
She said: “I’ve had family that have overdosed from hardcore opiates and prescription drugs. And I’ve mentioned part of this in 2019, at the time I got the exception for rape and incest in the fetal-heartbeat bill I told my story about being raped when I was 16, but I’ve never said this part publicly before: I was prescribed antidepressants afterwards, and it made my feelings a lot worse. And so I started using cannabis for a brief moment, for a time in my life. It helped me. It cut down on my anxiety and helped me get through some dark periods.”
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