Barney Frank, Ron Paul Move to Legalize Pot

In a move likely to please those suffering from chronic illnesses like HIV, two Congressmen, Texas's Ron Paul, a Republican, and Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat, plan to introduce a bill on Thursday to decriminalize marijuana.

If passed, the bill would allow to states legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana. It would also take away federal funds and resources currently spent and utilized on fighting marijuana dealing and smuggling.

Frank and Paul are modeling their effort on the 21st amendment to the Constitution, which reversed a prohibition on alcohol. The Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy group for legalization, declared the current effort as the "first bill ever introduced in Congress to end federal marijuana prohibition."