People have very mixed feelings about Biden’s new decision.
In a move that has caused a lot of controversy among Democrats and Republicans, it has now been learned that President Biden’s new decision to pardon federal marijuana possession charges WON’T be given to members of the United States military.
According to Fox, a White House official explained that President Biden’s new pardon will not be extended to Uniform Code of Military Justice offenses. This means that service members under the U.S. military law with similar crimes won’t be forgiven.
President Biden explained, “As I often said during my campaign for president, no one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana. Sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit.”
Many Republicans are now saying that Biden didn’t offer this new pardon to military service members because the military is typically more conservative and Biden won’t get votes from much of the United States military.
Additionally, many Republican voters believe President Biden only issued this pardon to gain support heading into the midterm elections which many believe will be a big loss for Democrats.
Biden also explained, “I’m calling on governors to pardon simple state marijuana possession offenses. Just as no one should be in a federal prison solely for possessing marijuana, no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either.”