McConnell Attacks Pelosi for Claiming Cannabis Is ‘Proven’ Therapy

During a speech on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) threw shade at Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California) over comments she made last week in defense of provisions giving the cannabis industry access to traditional banking services, Marijuana Moment reports.

During his speech, McConnell blasted House Democrats’ COVID-19 relief bill on Tuesday as a wishlist containing “strange new special interest carveouts” and said Democrats were refusing to compromise on the issue.

“[Speaker Pelosi] said that, with respect to this virus, marijuana is ‘a therapy that has proven successful.’ You can’t make this up. I hope she shares her breakthrough with Dr. Fauci.” — McConnell, on the Senate floor

Pelosi’s comments last week, however, argued against the notion that cannabis — which was accepted by every state-legal market except Massachusetts as an essential service during the pandemic — is unrelated to the federal government’s COVID-19 relief package.

“I don’t agree with you that cannabis is not related to this,” she said. “This is a therapy that has proven successful.” It is unclear whether she meant as a treatment for the coronavirus or as a general treatment for the many diseases and health conditions for which millions of U.S. citizens rely on medical cannabis to treat.

There have been at least two preprint studies (meaning they were published without undergoing the typical peer-review process) that suggest cannabinoids and certain terpene formulations could be effective at quelling an immune system response to the coronavirus that has proven fatal in some patients.

The disputed cannabis provisions include language from the SAFE Banking Act that was inserted after the GOP-controlled Senate sat on and refused to consider the standalone legislation for months.