U.S. Judge Blocks Deportation of British Anti-Disinformation Campaigner Imran Ahmed Amid Free Speech Dispute 
Hanwha Signals Readiness to Build Nuclear-Powered Submarines at Philly Shipyard for U.S. Navy 
U.S. Shifts Strategy Toward Economic Pressure With Venezuelan Oil Quarantine 
US and Japan Fast-Track $550 Billion Strategic Investment Initiative 
Israel Advances Controversial Inquiry Bill Into October 7 Hamas Attack Amid Public Backlash 
Democratic Attorneys General Sue Trump Administration Over Proposed Limits on Gender-Affirming Care for Youth 
U.S. Prioritizes Economic Pressure With Venezuelan Oil Quarantine as Sanctions Intensify 
NSW Passes Toughest Gun and Anti-Terror Laws After Bondi Beach Shooting 
U.S. Signs $2.3 Billion Global Health MOUs With Four African Nations 
Christmas Eve Jazz Concert Canceled After Kennedy Center Renaming to Include Trump 
Global Backlash Grows Over Israel’s Approval of New West Bank Settlements 
Kim Jong Un Oversees Missile Test Amid Rising Korean Peninsula Tensions 
Democratic Governors Urge Trump Administration to Lift Halt on East Coast Offshore Wind Projects 
US Airstrikes Target Islamic State Militants in Northwest Nigeria Amid Rising Security Concerns 
Zelenskiy Urges High-Level Talks With Trump as Ukraine, U.S. Near 20-Point Peace Framework 
Japan Approves Record ¥122.3 Trillion Budget as Takaichi Seeks Fiscal Balance 
U.S. Urges Acceptance of Honduras Election Results as Nasry Asfura Declared President-Elect 
Last week, US President Joe Biden announced that he would issue pardons to those convicted of federal offenses for possession of marijuana. Biden’s announcement would fulfill another pledge he made during his campaign.
Biden announced Thursday last week that he would be pardoning people who have prior federal convictions of marijuana possession. Biden also urged state governors to take the same action and directed the Health and Human Services department and Attorney General Merrick Garland to conduct a review of how marijuana is classed under federal law.
This marks the first major steps by Biden to ease the classification of marijuana, which is currently under the same designation as LSD and heroin.
The US leader said thousands of people who have prior federal convictions could be denied opportunities in life such as employment, housing, and education, and his measure would relieve such consequences. Biden also cited that people of color are disproportionately affected by the consequences.
“No one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana,” said Biden in the video of his announcement.
“It’s legal in many states, and criminal records for marijuana possession have led to needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities. And that’s before you address the racial disparities around who suffers the consequences. While white, Black, and Brown people use marijuana at similar rates, Black and brown people are arrested, prosecuted, and convicted at disproportionate rates.”
Biden’s announcement fulfills another campaign pledge and comes weeks before the upcoming midterm elections in November that would determine whether the Democratic Party maintains control of Congress or if Republicans retake the majority in one or both chambers.
A senior Biden administration official said more than 6,500 people with prior federal convictions could be affected by the pardons.
On the same day, the White House said there was no new intelligence information behind the US leader’s comments on Russia’s nuclear threats. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said there has been no indication that Russia was preparing to use nuclear weapons on Ukraine, and the US does not see a reason to change its current nuclear posture.
Jean-Pierre said Biden was reiterating what Washington is saying on how Moscow’s nuclear threats must be taken seriously.
