This billionaire is spending millions to defeat recreational weed in Florida

[Pelican Press 0]

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This billionaire is spending millions to defeat recreational weed in Florida

Ken Griffin has pledged $12 million to help stop a Florida bill that would legalize recreational weed.

In a Miami Herald op-ed, Griffin wrote that the initiative would harm children and increase ******.

The billionaire hedge-fund manager has this year expanded his company’s presence in Florida.

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is pouring millions of dollars into an effort to block recreational weed from becoming legalized in Florida.

In a Friday op-ed for the Miami Herald, the billionaire founder of

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wrote that he had pledged $20 million to various Florida politicians and an effort to block Amendment 3 from being passed. The Herald clarified in a later article that $12 million would be pledged to defeat Amendment 3, with the rest of the funds going to local candidates.

“Passage of Amendment 3 would create a monopoly for large ********** dispensaries and permit **** use in public and private areas throughout Florida,” Griffin, who lives in Miami, wrote. “That will help no one other than special interests — and it will hurt us all, especially through more dangerous roads, a higher risk of addiction among our youth, and an

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.”

Griffin wrote that “skyrocketing ******, suffering among children,” and “a decline in the quality of life in Florida’s vibrant neighborhoods” would be inevitable if Amendment 3 passed, citing similar initiatives in California, Colorado, and New York that he called “mistakes.”

A 2022 study published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs found the

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was linked to an increase in traffic crashes and fatalities. However, research from the

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found that legalized recreational cannabis did not correlate with an increase in substance-use disorders or use of other drugs among adults and found no link to increases in cognitive, psychological, social, relationship, or financial problems. Meta-analyses comparing the results of multiple studies regarding the impact of ********** legalization on ****** rates are generally inconclusive.

“With the best educational opportunities in the nation and a flourishing economy, Florida is a shining example of how good governance improves people’s lives, and I am thankful to all

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for making this possible,” Griffin said in a statement to Business Insider.

He added: “I have lived the nightmare of misguided politicians in other states whose policies are destroying jobs, fostering ******, ravaging schools, and damaging communities. My dream is for all Floridians to continue to have even more opportunities, and I am committed to supporting policies and principles that will further elevate Florida as the greatest place to live, work, and raise a family in America.”

Griffin relocated Citadel from Chicago to Miami in 2022. This summer, he announced his intention to

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to include two more floors in its planned 55-story tower in the city.

While he has been a

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for years — spending hundreds of millions of dollars in support of various causes and candidates (largely ***********, according to the campaign-finance watchdog OpenSecrets) — it appears with Citadel’s relocation to Miami, Griffin is getting more closely involved in Florida-specific initiatives.

Florida’s Amendment 3 is sponsored by the political committee Smart & Safe Florida. Representatives for the organization did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the group has, in posts on social media, rejected some of what Griffin said in his op-ed.

“A major benefit of ********** legalization? The DECREASE in teen usage. That’s right,” Smart & Safe Florida wrote in a Sunday post on X, linking to an article by U.S. News and World Report. “Study after study has found states that embraced legal regulation vs. prohibition experienced a drop in teenage ********** usage and an increase in college enrollment.”

Polling released this week by Florida Phoenix indicated the measure would likely pass, with it receiving 64% voter support.

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