Buehler was responding to a comment made by President Donald Trump’s Press Secretary Sean Spicer who told reporters this week that while medical marijuana has definite medical applications, recreational marijuana is still illegal under federal law and that federal law enforcement will likely be intervening in Colorado, Washington and Oregon.

Bend area state Representative Knute Buehler, a surgeon, said the federal government should back off from any such involvement in what is clearly a state’s rights issue – adding that recreational marijuana was approved by Oregon voters two years ago and that three states have well established growing, processing and sales proceedures that have very high standards and security. Buehler said rather than getting in the way of the recreational marijuana industry the federal government should take a more realistic view of it.

Oregon Coast state Representative David Gomberg echoed his State House colleague’s position while adding that the federal government should also lift a ban on banking services for the marijuana industry – that it’s risky to be having to handle such large amounts of money in paying labor costs for growing, processing and sales of the legal plant in Colorado, Oregon, Washington and likely soon in California.

Meanwhile U.S. Senator’s Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley have chimed in – Wyden pointing out that Oregon voters have spoken in a statewide vote to approve recreational marijuana in Oregon. Senator Merkley added that to re-prohibit the industry would only drive it back underground, something that no amount of local, state or federal law enforcement have been able to put a dent in. U.S. Representative Earl Blumenauer agreed that Aemrica’s war on marijuana has been a prolonged and very expensive failure. He urged the Trump administration to exercise common sense and remove the federal sanctions on recreational marijuana.