In saying that federal marijuana laws should not be changed, Byrne said the nation needs to become more God-centered. Byrne pointed to a slight decline in U.S. life expectancy.
“In a country as rich and as prosperous as America, why is life expectancy going down?” Byrne said. “It’s because of suicide, alcohol abuse and drug abuse. People doing things that literally result in their own death. How in the world does that happen in our country? It’s because we’ve taken God out of the center of our lives. And when you try to take God out of the center of your life, you’ll keep trying to stick something else in there but nothing else will fill it – no drug, no alcohol, no power, no wealth, nothing will fill that hole.”
A staffer for Representative Byrne said, "We do not support legalization". When asked about medical marijuana or decriminilization, they did not take a postition. Contacted by NORML office on 2/18/16.