Clarence Thomas is the leader of the Supreme Court’s Conservative Wing.
But Thomas threw everyone a curve ball.
Clarence Thomas just wrote one opinion that was the last thing anyone expected.
The Supreme Court recently considered taking up a case regarding a Colorado marijuana dealer’s tax dispute but the Court refused to take on the case.
In a dissent to the Supreme Court’s decision not to hear the case, Thomas argued that federal laws banning the possession of marijuana no longer made sense.
“A prohibition on interstate use or cultivation of marijuana may no longer be necessary or proper to support the federal government’s piecemeal approach,” Thomas began.
Justice Thomas continued, arguing that while there is still a federal ban on marijuana on the books, the U.S. government allows 36 states to have some form of marijuana legalization.
“The Federal Government’s current approach is a half-in, half-out regime that simultaneously tolerates and forbids local use of marijuana. This contradictory and unstable state of affairs strains basic principles of federalism and conceals traps for the unwary, Thomas added.
Thomas explained that federal law prevents marijuana business owners from deducting business expenses which leaves them at a financial disadvantage because of the nature of their businesses.
“Many marijuana-related businesses operate entirely in cash because federal law prohibits certain financial institutions from knowingly accepting deposits from or providing other bank services to businesses that violate federal law,” Thomas continued.
“Cash-based operations are understandably enticing to burglars and robbers. But, if marijuana-related businesses, in recognition of this, hire armed guards for protection, the owners and the guards might run afoul of a federal law that imposes harsh penalties for using a firearm in furtherance of a ‘drug trafficking crime,’” Thomas stated.
At this point, it only seems like a matter of when and not if the federal ban on marijuana will be wiped away.
And one of the most conservative justices in Supreme Court history is saying that time is now.
Renewed Right will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.