The House is set to pass legislation to legalize marijuana nationwide, an effort that has unprecedented levels of support in both chambers of Congress.
The bill is likely to pass the lower chamber largely along party lines, with most Republicans expected to oppose it.
Proponents argue that legalizing marijuana at the federal level will simply reflect most states’ existing policies that allow it in some form.
They also frame the effort as a way to end the disproportionate punishment of racial minorities and people in low-income communities for possessing and using weed.
And with an overwhelming majority of Americans — as much as 91 percent in a Pew Research Poll last year — backing marijuana legalization for at least medical purposes, Democrats believe it’s a winning issue for them ahead of November’s midterms.
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