By Zach Cartwright, www.usuncut.com, November 4, 2015, Thanks to Collectively Conscious

Senator Sanders’ bill would remove marijuana from the DEA’s list of “most dangerous drugs.”

Ending federal marijuana prohibition is one of Bernie Sanders’ highest priorities.

Today, the Vermont U.S. Senator and Democratic presidential candidate introduced the “End Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act,” which would remove marijuana from the federal government’s Controlled Substances Act, and strike marijuana from the DEA’s “Most Dangerous Drugs” list. This would allow states to make their own decision on whether or not to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes without any interference from federal agencies.

“In the United States we have 2.2 million people in jail today, more than any other country. And we’re spending about $80 billion a year to lock people up. We need major changes in our criminal justice system – including changes in drug laws,” Sanders said in an October 28 speech at George Mason University. “Too many Americans have seen their lives destroyed because they have criminal records as a result of marijuana use. That’s wrong. That has got to change.”

Sanders’ bill is originally modeled after a bill previously introduced by Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colorado), who was a proponent of marijuana legalization long before Colorado voters elected to legalize it for recreational use in 2012.

“Just as alcohol prohibition failed in the 1920s, it’s clear marijuana prohibition is failing today,” Polis said in a public statement. “For decades, the federal ban on marijuana has wasted tax dollars, impeded our criminal justice system, lined the pockets of drug cartels, and trampled on states’ ability to set their own public health laws. … Today’s introduction of the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act in the Senate is a huge step forward in the movement to enact the commonsense drug laws needed to grow our economy and restore fairness to our justice system.”

Last year, Alaska and Oregon voters legalized marijuana in ballot referendums, after Washington and Colorado voters legalized it two years prior. Portland, Maine also voted to legalize marijuana in the last election cycle, making them the first East Coast city to do so.