Burn One for Bernie? Portland Marijuana Shop Donates Sales To Sanders’ Campaign

A pot shop in Portland announced it plans to donate a portion of its sales to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign, KGW-TV reported Wednesday. As part of the “Burn One for Bernie” campaign, the owner of Foster Buds, which has two dispensaries, said the business will donate 10 percent of sales from every $10 “Farmer 12” joint sold to Sanders’ campaign.

“The cannabis community has never been appropriately represented or considered on a federal stage. Cannabis enthusiasts, supporters and medical patients come from every walk of life now, and we all deserve a president who will rally to reschedule cannabis and transform America’s Cannabis policies,” Foster Bud wrote on Instagram. “We believe Bernie Sanders is the best and most likely candidate to appropriately represent the needs of our community.”

In addition to the donation, Foster Buds is also giving away “Burn One for Bernie” T-shirts.

KGW reported store manager Ken Martin says he sees no reason not to support Sanders. “Everything he’s looking to do is for the betterment of us. He’s looking to keep the medical community, he sees the advancements — so why not support him?” Martin asked.

Sanders supports medical marijuana and the decriminalization of recreational marijuana, as well as the right of states to opt for full legalization, his campaign website says. He has come out in favor of ending the federal prohibition on marijuana, and co-sponsored the Marijuana Businesses Access to Banking Act of 2015 to ensure access to banking services for legitimate marijuana businesses. However, Sanders said last year he is not a fan of marijuana himself.

“Because I coughed a lot, I don’t know. I smoked marijuana twice, didn’t quite work for me. … It’s not my thing, but it is the thing of a whole lot of people,” Sanders said in an interview with Yahoo News.