🏫 Why did feds cancel visas for 13 UW students?

🗳️ The Plot Thickens For Madison’s April Election Results

• In a wild end to the District 15 City Council race, incumbent Ald. Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford said she will serve another term, even though she suspended her campaign in January due to her financial circumstances and endorsed her opponent, Ryan Koglin.
• Voters in the district elected her by over 200 votes. “I don’t believe that the people of District 15 made a mistake,” Martinez-Rutherford, the first openly transgender person elected to the council, said at a press conference Tuesday. “I believe they made a statement.”
• Meanwhile, the Madison City Clerk’s office has ordered a recount in the District 19 election, in which challenger Anthony “Nino” Amato lost to incumbent Ald. John Guequierre by just nine votes. The automatic recount will take place Thursday. [Cap Times, City of Madison, Madison Minutes]

🏫 Visas Revoked For 13 UW International Students

• UW-Madison officials said 13 international students, six current students and seven alumni at the university on employment extensions, had their visas abruptly revoked by the U.S. government.
• University officials said they had no role in the terminations by U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and don’t know if they are connected to political activity by the students. On March 27, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said over 300 international students across the country have had their visas revoked since President Donald Trump took office. In one high-profile case, a Tufts University student was taken off the street by ICE agents.
• The UW’s International Student Services has contacted the 13 individuals to offer advice and support, officials said. [WMTV, ABC News, UW-Madison]

🔌 Internet Outage Knocks Madison Schools Offline

• Madison teachers had to prepare offline lesson plans after system-wide internet issues hit the entire Madison Metropolitan School District, affecting the ability for both teachers and students to work on computers.
• The outages began Monday and continued into Tuesday, and school officials asked all non-teaching staff with secure remote access to work from home. Internet access was back up by Tuesday afternoon. [🔒 WSJ]

Many high-profile Madisonians have long fought for the full legalization of cannabis, but when it comes to passing legislation in the statehouse, little progress has been made. Gov. Tony Evers said in January that he would ask lawmakers to let voters decide whether it should be legal through binding legislative proposals on the ballot.

But that hasn’t stopped countless cannabis-related businesses from sprouting up across the isthmus in the last decade. On the City Cast Madison podcast today, host Bianca Martin talks to Phillip Scott, owner of Crone Apothecary and Wisconsin Hemp Farmers and Manufacturers, about what is and isn’t legal in the state.

Weed’s Legal Standings

Let’s clear some items up quickly with a look at the rules.

Federally, marijuana is classified as a Schedule One substance, which the law defines as having no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse (though there has been an effort to lower this classification to Schedule Three).

At the state level, cannabis is also classified as a Schedule I hallucinogenic substance under the Wisconsin Uniform Controlled Substances Act.

In Madison, possession of cannabis is still illegal, but police will not pursue charges unless given a reason. Madisonians who are over the age of 18 are allowed to possess no more than 28 grams of cannabis. Additionally, there are rules for when and where you can light up, for example, you can’t smoke anywhere that all smoking is prohibited (like bars and restaurants) or in a moving vehicle.

CBD, Delta-8, and Beyond

In 2017, then-Gov. Scott Walker signed legislation paving the way for hemp farming in Wisconsin, a practice that was halted with the Marihuana Tax Act of 1938. Once farmers were able to start growing hemp, this opened the door to CBD cultivation and distribution.

Cannabidiol, commonly referred to as CBD, is an active ingredient in cannabis derived from the hemp plant. CBD itself is not psychoactive but the plants grown for CBD also contain psychoactive molecules as Alan Robinson, cannabis activist and co-founder of Herbal Aspects explained on City Cast Madison.

CBD can be synthesized into delta-8 and delta-9 THC (and beyond!), thus opening a door to legal cannabis products. It’s important to note, however, that in order to remain legal, the delta-9 THC content of the product must be less than 0.3%.

Delta-8 THC is about 60% less psychoactive than delta-9, according to Robinson. But chemically the two are very similar, which makes it a great option for older users who might not want to experience an intense high but are still looking for that euphoric feeling. Robinson compares delta-8 to the 1970s style of cannabis, which offered a much milder experience.

There’s also THCA, a type of chemical called a cannabinoid in the cannabis plant. It’s popular in states like Wisconsin where the sale of THC is illegal, because if THCA is heated it will change into THC or delta-9 THC.

⬆️ Last Week’s Photo

You can find these record covers at the Rigby Tavern!

🎉 Congratulations to Tarah H., Sarah S., and Josh S. for being the first three people to get it right! Plus, a special jury prize to Rutha J. for calling it the “Righty Riggity RIGBYYYY”!

⬇️ This Week’s Photo

Where is this door located? A few clues:

• It’s on the east side
• It’s a restaurant that’s a welcome sight for tired and hungry diners
• The food is great, although you might want to have a mint after eating the Bob’s Bad Breath Burger!