The president signed the omnibus spending bill into law yesterday, lifting the ban on medical marijuana in Washington, D.C. It is now 100% official, and the nation's capital can begin to implement the original medical marijuana initiative from 1998.

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…

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

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.

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.

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…

Tonight, MPP’s allies in the U.S. House of Representatives took a big step toward protecting medical marijuana patients in the District of Columbia. For ten years, the D.C. spending bill has included an amendment that prevents the city from implementing a voter-approved medical marijuana initiative. Tonight, the House passed the 2010 version of the bill, wiping out the provision blocking medical marijuana. This is a major step and likely signals ultimate victory for advocates in D.C. The spending…

In the 90s, Congressman Barr was one of MPP’s most aggressive opponents. He authored the Barr amendment in 1998, which for 10 years has blocked Washington, D.C. from implementing a voter-approved medical marijuana initiative. In recent years, however, Congressman Barr has changed both his position and his party affiliation -- and has worked with MPP to eliminate the amendment that bears his name. This talk from early July deals with bipartisanship in drug policy reform and conservative arguments…

Last night, voters, patients, and advocates in Washington, D.C. moved one step closer to implementing a medical marijuana law that’s been 10 years in the making. Since 1999, Congress has used its unique authority over D.C. affairs to block a local medical marijuana initiative passed by 69% of D.C. voters. The legislation responsible for blocking the will of D.C. voters is known as the Barr amendment, and it lives in the annual D.C. appropriations bill. Last week, the congressional subcommittee in…