Fact Checker: John Boehner is blowing smoke on prisons and pot possession
Democracy Dies in Darkness vvvvvvvvvv The truth behind the rhetoric John Boehner is blowing smoke on prisons and pot possession Former House speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) joined the advisory board of a multi-state cannabis company. The former speaker, who was once staunchly opposed, said “ When you look at the number of people in our state and federal penitentiaries, who are there for possession of small amounts of cannabis, you begin to really scratch your head. We have literally filled up our jails with people who are nonviolent and frankly do not belong there.” There are lots of people arrested for possessing marijuana but few of them end up in prison. (There is a difference between jails and prisons. In this case, he’s talking about prisons.) Not a single state treats pot possession as a felony. And in the federal system in 2017, only 92 people in the entire country were sentenced for possession. Boehner is repeating a myth. Under no stret...