"Rosenberg is clearly not the right fit for the DEA in this administration."

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) said Wednesday that acting Drug Enforcement Administration chief Chuck Rosenberg should be replaced after calling the notion of smoking marijuana for medical purposes a "joke." 

"Rosenberg is clearly not the right fit for the DEA in this administration," Blumenauer said during a speech on the House floor Wednesday morning.

Though it’s often confused with the movement for legalizing weed, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015 is actually a separate movement specifically for cannabis sativa plants cultivated for development and production of hemp products.

The bill seeks to amend the definition of marijuana in the Controlled Substances Act so that it will not include industrial hemp. Here are four facts about the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015.

1. The bill has a long history.

While it was reintroduced in 2015, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act has gone through several iterations. It was first introduced in 2005 by Ron Paul, Pete Stark, Jim McDermott, and Raul Grijalva, but stalled after it was referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

A GRANDFATHER escaped an immediate prison sentence despite police finding that his home had been converted into a cannabis factory.

Brian Hughes was found with 28 cannabis plants and over £11,000 worth of the drug at his home in Lea Lane near Ross-on-Wye.

In a written statement, the 42-year-old said he had been threatened into growing the drug after owing money to a loan shark.

Harpreet Sandhu, prosecuting, said that on April 14, police were on routine patrol at 3am in the Ross-on-Wye area when they smelt cannabis outside the defendants house.

This post initially appeared in Cannabis Traderon Nov. 13, 2015.

On Nov. 12, 2015, the Colorado Department of Securities released a financier alert titled, “Are you an Informed Financier? The Next Huge Thing.” The alert dealt with the popularity of investments in cannabis, binary alternatives and digital currencies, and how prospective investors need to conduct due diligence prior to making any choices.

Utah patients with conditions ranging from cancer pain to epilepsy would be able to take medicine with cannabidiol (CBD) — a marijuana extract — under a bill endorsed Wednesday by an interim legislative committee.

But the Health and Human Services Interim Committee backed away from the more ambitious medical marijuana plan proposed by Sen. Mark Madsen, R-Saratoga Springs. Madsen said he still plans to propose his legislation to the full Legislature.

The bills are likely to trigger lots of debate in the upcoming session as a host of sick Utahns plead for a medicine they believe will ease their pain. Some medical and law enforcement professionals, meanwhile, will urge caution, as they have in a series of committee meetings since spring.

In an attempt to head off an approaching constitutional ballot change in 2016, a Florida lawmaker has presented an expense into the legislature that would legalize medical marijuana in the state. The bill, SB 852, was presented by Sen. Jeff Brandes.

“This legislation acknowledges the growing assistance in Florida for the medical usage of marijuana as an additional alternative for physicians in the treatment of their patients,” said Brandes in a news release. “We develop on the very best practices of the 23 other states that have legislated medical cannabis.”

TIRANA, Albania — Albanian police say they have destroyed a large drug network in the capital Tirana, arresting 30 people while five others remained at large.

A statement Wednesday said that following six months of investigation police arrested "organizers, coordinators and distributors of hard drugs," who had distributed drugs worth 900,000 euros ($960,000) in the last two years.

Police seized about one kilogram of heroin, 180 small packages of cocaine and a number of pistols, ammunition, cars and cell phones used by the ring members.

SALT LAKE CITY -- The Utah State Legislature will consider two separate medical marijuana bills when it meets next year.

But cannabis advocates claim only one of those bills will actually do patients some good.

The legislature's interim Health and Human Services Committee met Wednesday to discuss a pair of bills. One is sponsored by Rep. Brad Daw, R-Orem; the other is sponsored by Sen. Mark Madsen, R-Saratoga Springs.

Rep. Daw said his bill would allow for cannabidoil to be used to treat a long list of diseases and conditions including cancer, HIV/AIDS, and epilepsy. He told the committee that prescribing doctors would provide research on its effectiveness to the legislature that would be considered when the law would come up for renewal.

The mayors of two of Vancouver Island’s biggest cities are calling on the federal Liberal government to advise them what to do with the illegal pot shops cropping up in their communities and explain more of what the path to promised legalization could look like.

When it comes to marijuana legalization, the United States is stuck between two immovable forces. Canada has recently elected a prime minister who favors the immediate legalization of marijuana. Additionally, Mexico’s Supreme Court has recently ruled that Mexican citizens can grow, possess and smoke marijuana for personal and recreational use.