VOA慢速英语--Medical Marijuana Is Now Legal in Most US States

AS IT IS 2016-11-17 Medical Marijuana Is Now Legal in Most US States

On Election Day in the United States, Arkansas voted to permit the medical use of marijuana. Twenty-seven other states legalized medical marijuana earlier. Eight states now permit its use for non-medical reasons as well.

State officials now will propose measures to govern the growth and sale of marijuana. However, production, sale and use of the drug remains¹ a federal crime.

Jake Bleed is an official at the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. He says many people are asking questions connected to the decision on marijuana.

“Do people get preference? How do employers deal with these questions? How do state employees apply? There’s a lot of questions out there that we’re getting, that we’re going to have to work through the answers to.”

Some people use marijuana to fight pain or discomfort² caused by disease. The drug also helps some people deal with the sickness caused by some treatments of disease. It can also be used to ease some effects of brain disorders³.

Asa Hutchinson is the governor of Arkansas. He says that federal laws are more powerful than state laws. He says the Obama administration did not order action against states that made marijuana use legal. He said they did not have to fear federal enforcement powers, although the new laws violate federal measures. But he wonders about the president-elect.

“Will the Trump⁴ administration have a different approach? We don’t have the new attorney general yet -- what will be their approach?”

The economies of some states have improved where medical and recreational use of marijuana is permitted. Governments have collected hundreds of millions of dollars in new taxes. That, and public demands, means more states will likely consider legalizing marijuana use.

Words in This Story

preference – n. an advantage that is given to some people or things and not to others

approach -– n. a way of dealing with something; a way of doing or thinking about something

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 discomfort   

n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便

参考例句：

• One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
• She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。

3 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。