How Republicans have learned to love the beak

Congressional Republicans, who for years have been blocking marijuana legislation, are becoming the most valuable allies in the cannabis industry.

At a historic vote on Wednesday, 91 Republicans joined 229 Democrats to pass a law that would finally give marijuana companies access to banks – an essential tool for the development of the industry.

History continues below

The vote took place after key sponsors of the Cannabis Bank Act spent months trying to mobilize support from the GOP, walking on a tightrope to avoid turning it into a weed legalization law. The hope was that their support would give a new impetus to the Republican-led Senate.

The Republicans' participation in the bill is blatant evidence that cannabis policy is changing rapidly after 33 states – and probably more to come – have legalized marijuana in one form or another. The long-standing stigma around the bush is disappearing as cannabis becomes more and more rooted in local economies.

"The genius is out of the bottle," said Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio), who led efforts to build the Republican coalition, while he remains opposed to legalizing marijuana for recreational purposes .

Republicans have long been the strongest opponents of legalization, with GOP leaders in Congress refusing in the past to even consider the narrow security port the House approved on Wednesday. The bill, which was passed in a 321-103 vote, would protect banks from lawsuits filed by the federal government for serving marijuana companies in states where the drug is legal. The federal ban on the sale of marijuana remains.

Now, the seal of approval by so many Republicans leaves supporters of the bill a real hope that the Republican – led Senate will pass the bill in one way or another.

President Donald Trump has sent positive signals and should not stand in the way. Last year, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who had been fired by Trump, overthrew an Obama era policy that allowed lawful marijuana companies to operate legally.

Republican House leaders have refused to try to block the bill, giving members the freedom to vote in favor of the law. Minority leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) Was among his supporters.

Patrick McHenry (RN), a Republican on the House's Financial Services Committee, said he did not try to dissuade GOP lawmakers from supporting the bill. McHenry voted against the bill.

McHenry's predecessor, Jeb Hensarling, a Texas Republican who chaired the committee for six years, was widely viewed as a major stumbling block to legislation, as Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.) First introduced in 2013. The bill received its first panel hearing soon after the Democrats took control of the House in January.

"What I said to Republican members is that you have to listen to your constituents and your conscience and make the best decision you feel is worthwhile," said McHenry.

Several factors made it possible to obtain strong support from Republicans, which were reinforced by significant lobbying of banks, credit unions and the cannabis industry.

Rapid state action to allow the sale of cannabis has created public safety problems because, without access to bank accounts, marijuana companies have been forced to make cash transactions, making it a target for the criminals. This has also made it difficult for regulators and state officials to track revenues from the industry.

But the legalization of marijuana at the state level has also made it a problem for a growing number of vendors and service providers who may not sell marijuana but do business with the cannabis industry, more and more lucrative.

The repercussions made it a key topic for bank lobbyists and skeptical Republicans.

"The most compelling arguments have centered on these secondary relationships," said Rob Nichols, president and chief executive officer of the American Bankers Association. "It's the local plumber, it's the local electrician, the prosecutor, the accountant who deals with a cannabis grower or a clinic who then has to deal with difficulties in getting products. and banking services. "

Stivers said that he had decided to get involved early in the year after a nutrient salesperson in his district informed him that he had been in charge. he was at risk of losing his bank accounts because they were selling to cannabis-related businesses.

"We are starting to hear from homeowners, hardware stores on the street and many other people," he said.

After a March committee vote that attracted the support of 11 Republicans, proponents of the bill looked for other ways to make the legislation more attractive to Republican leaders of the GOP and the Senate.

They focused on selling the bill to the GOP legislators as banking legislation – not the legalization of marijuana.

They agreed on two additions, which helped attract more GOP lawmakers and could win Senate Republicans.

A new set of provisions would establish specific bank protections for hemp products, which, like marijuana, are derived from cannabis. Hemp is an increasingly important crop in the state of Kentucky, his home country, Mitch McConnell, and has ensured that it is legalized as part of a recent farm bill.

"I was very, very consistent about the opposition to the legalization of marijuana but to support the legalization of industrial hemp," said Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.), Who decided to support the bill today after winning the addition of hemp. "It's the vehicle that rolls. That's how I can help industrial hemp. "

The other addition to the bill would prevent bank regulators from discouraging lenders from serving businesses based on reputational risk. It has been years since Republicans seek to prevent the resumption of a Justice Department program dating back to the Obama era, known as the Operation Choke Point, which would have lobbied banks for them to break the political favor ties.

Trump administration officials said the move was over, but Republicans say they do not want the next administration to revive it.

Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), who currently chairs the Senate Banking Committee, was one of the key critics of the program. Crapo does not have a legal cannabis industry in its state and was perceived for the first time as a potential hurdle to legislation on cannabis banks. But he recently told POLITICO that he had been persuaded to pass the bill on his committee – an announcement that, according to members of the House, helped move the needle further away with the Republicans in their room.

"It's one thing to vote for this knowing that his death will be deep and wet," said Rep. Denny Heck (D-Wash.), Who has been working on legislation with Perlmutter since its inception. "It's something else if it sounds like," Hey, maybe it's a viable problem. "… For him to say something, for the president to say something, all this added fuel to our fire, they were all made of wood pellets in the burner."

Before the vote in the House, Stivers said the addition of "Choke Point" helped boost his estimate of likely Republican support from 50 votes to at least 80.

"It changed the calculation," he said.

The addition brought Republicans as representative Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.). He voted against the bill in committee and against marijuana for recreational purposes, but has been trying for years to pass an anti-Choke Point law.

Luetkemeyer is not convinced that the underlying legislation will solve the problems of financial services access to the cannabis industry. But he will win. Like other lawmakers, he is also aware of the potential medicinal benefits. Her granddaughter has seizure problems and a cannabis product called cannabidiol, or CBD, is used to treat epilepsy.

"Sometimes we weigh a good and a bad in a bill and we see that there is more good than bad," he said.