The U.S. Senate today passed historic legislation to end the decade-long ban on implementing a medical marijuana law in Washington, D.C. This marks the first time in history Congress has changed a marijuana law for the better. Only Obama’s signature is needed for the change to become law.

This is not only a huge victory for medical marijuana patients in the nation’s capital, it marks a historic shift on the medical marijuana issue nationwide. This is the first time Congress has given its assent to a state or local law that permits medical use of marijuana. Coming on top of the announcement that the Justice Department will no longer interfere with state medical marijuana laws, this shows that the ground has fundamentally shifted.

Before the D.C. law can go into effect, the city council will need to transmit the original 1998 initiative to Congress for a 30-day review period, which is not expected to present an obstacle. The law will take effect at the conclusion of this review, and the D.C. government will then be charged with creating regulations to govern the implementation of the initiative’s language.

It seems that Congress is finally listening to voters, who have supported protection for medical marijuana patients for well over a decade, as well as to the medical community’s growing recognition of marijuana’s medical value. Lifting the ban on D.C.’s law falls far short of sweeping, national reform, but it is surely a sign of good things to come.

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Check out this point/counterpoint on medical marijuana on the new medical Web site, Pain.com. They tell us that as of this morning it was the most popular item on the site.

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The following clip aired last night on "The Situation Room" with Wolf Blitzer.

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One of the more outrageous and gut-wrenching trials involving marijuana in recent memory is taking place right now in New Jersey. Somerville resident John Wilson, who suffers from multiple sclerosis and treats himself with marijuana he grows, is being charged with operating a drug manufacturing facility, even though there is no evidence to show that Wilson supplied marijuana to anyone but himself.

Edward R. Hannaman, a board member of Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey, describes this horrendous injustice as such:

“Outrageously, but understandably, the prosecution desperately wants jurors to be denied all the truly relevant facts. It has fought to forbid Wilson from mentioning his disease, that marijuana has been proven to be an effective palliative for multiple sclerosis, that he was using it solely for that purpose, that 13 other states have legalized it for that purpose and that New Jersey is about to. All the jurors will be allowed to hear is evidence proving Wilson ‘manufactured’ marijuana. This is the type of injustice one is accustomed to seeing in a dictatorship -- not in America.”

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The U.S. House of Representatives just voted 221-202 on the omnibus spending bill, which will allow Washington, D.C. to implement its medical marijuana law. The Senate will now take up the legislation; we expect it to pass there without any alterations. President Obama will sign the bill into law once the Senate has acted.

We expect all of this to happen very quickly; Congress and the president have until December 18 to finalize the legislation.

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A new national poll shows that 53 percent of Americans favor ending marijuana prohibition, with support coming from all across the political spectrum: 61 percent among Democrats, 55 percent among Independents and 43 percent among Republicans.  This latest poll shows support to be 9 percent higher than a Gallup poll released in October, which showed that 44 percent of Americans favored making marijuana legal.

The new poll conducted last week by Angus Reid Public Opinion also reveals that 68 percent of Americans believe the war on drugs has been a failure.  When will our public servants finally listen to the people they’re supposed to be accountable to and reform our country’s marijuana laws?

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MPP’s Aaron Houston will be interviewed on CNN’s “The Situation Room” today regarding progress toward lifting the “Barr amendment,” which has blocked Washington D.C. from implementing its medical marijuana law passed by voters in 1998. The show airs at 6 p.m. Eastern time, 3 p.m. Pacific.

Bear in mind that TV news schedules are always subject to last-minute change if there’s breaking news, but they are pre-taping the interview even as I post this.

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Director of MPP-NV Dave Schwartz appears on NBC 3 KVBC Las Vegas to announce the beginning of the signature drive for an initiative to tax and regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. This initiative would be on the ballot for Nevadans to approve in 2012. 12/09/2009

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Marijuana Policy Project spokesman Mike Meno appears on NBC 4 to discuss the impending passage of a medical marijuana ordinance approved by voters in 1998. The law had been prevented from implementation by a funding ban that was recently removed from the Capitol's spending bill. 12/09/2009

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Congress released the language of a long anticipated bill today that, among other things, will lift the ban on Washington, D.C.’s medical marijuana law. D.C. is now one big step closer to protecting patients from arrest and jail for using marijuana with a doctor’s recommendation.

Ten years ago, D.C. residents overwhelmingly passed a medical marijuana ballot initiative, but the law’s implementation was blocked by Congress. The bill released today -- a large omnibus spending bill -- lifts the ban on medical marijuana in the nation’s capitol.

The fix will likely be voted into law by the end of the week. This will kick off a lengthy process to enact the ballot initiative passed 10 years ago, a process that enjoys massive support among D.C. residents. By the summer of 2010, D.C. could join the 13 medical marijuana states in protecting medical marijuana patients from arrest.

Update: It's important to note the brave members of Congress who helped make this happen. Congressman Jose Serrano (D-N.Y.) worked for years to remove the medical marijuana ban, and he was able to take it out of the first version of the spending bill back in July. Congressman David Obey (D-Wisc.) has also been a valuable ally, helping to protect Serrano's work as the bill moved through the complicated legislative process.  If you live in one of their districts, consider yourself well represented.

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