The District awarded licenses to six companies to grow marijuana and supply medical cannabis to the city.
Today's announcement comes two years after D.C. voted to establish 10 cultivation centers.
Angering Ward Five residents, five of the six centers will be in the ward. The remaining one will be in Ward 7.
(Read ward5heart’s explanation as to why so many of the centers are in Ward 5)
One of the centers awarded a license is partially owned by talk show host Montel Williams.
Officials say marijuana will be available in the District by the end of 2012.
The D.C. Department of Health had this to say:
“I am thrilled that the District of Columbia is one step closer to having the medical marijuana program available for those patients most in need,” said Dr. Akhter, Director DC Department of Health. The selected applicants went through a rigorous process and I am confident that these applicants are capable of ensuring patient and public safety, as they have met all the criteria defined in the program regulations.”
The addresses and names of the six selected centers can be found here.
* Six Maryland Republicans hoping to unseat U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin in November debated Thursday night over foreign policy, Supreme Court nominees and Obamacare.
According to The Maryland Reporter, the candidates, despite differing on most issues, could all agree on one thing: it’s time for Cardin to go.
Dan Bongino, Robert Broadus, Rich Douglas, Rick Hoover, David Jones and Corrogan Vaughn all participated in the forum.
Maryland’s primary is Tuesday, April 3.
Read more about the debate here or watch the video below.
* Early voting in D.C. ends on Saturday for the upcoming elections. Election day is on Tuesday, April 3.
Check here to see a list of early voting polling locations.
* While Maryland’s 6th congressional primary has largely focused on Democrat candidates John Delaney and Rob Garagiola, ten-term Republican incumbent Roscoe Bartlett has to beat seven other GOP candidates before he can become the nominee.
But with that many competitors, the 85-year old shouldn’t have too much trouble snagging the nomination since most the anti-Bartlett votes will likely be split among seven people. Two of the candidates—Sen David R. Brinkley and Del. Kathy Afzali—are state lawmakers.
Bartlett, however, could run into trouble in the general election. According to The Baltimore Sun, Bartlett's district was a target last year for Democrats who redrew its boundaries to be a more competitive seat.
The paper reports that in the old district only 40 percent of voters chose Barack Obama for president in 2008. In the redrawn 6th District, 57 percent voted for Obama.
The Cook Political Report ranked the district as one of five where a Democrat takeover is possible.
* The Post’s Mike DeBonis writes that in addition to the money that D.C. shadow senator candidate Peter Ross rakes in with his furniture business, he also has another source of income—an inheritance.
According to DeBonis, Ross receives at least $350,000 a year from inheritance.
His dad, who died in 2010, is a Holocaust survivor and plastics maganate. Togeether he and his wilfe donated $30 million to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Musema, including a $17.2 million bequest.
With this sort of money it’s no wonder Ross has been able to pump $200,000 of his own money into his campaign.
