“There’s some data out there that shows 47 percent of Americans have smoked marijuana at some point in their life,” said Keith Stroup, founder of the marijuana legalization organization NORML, pointing to a Time/CNN poll from 2002. “That was five years ago, and that means there are likely more living Americans today who have smoked than have not. That tells me that we are very close to a tipping point on this issue.”
NORML has chosen April 20th to unveil a new ad calling for marijuana legalization; it is set to air on CNN, Fox News Channel and elsewhere. In the spot, Americans say of the drug, “you can tax it, you can regulate it, apply age restrictions…create millions of new jobs… save our economy.”
“President Obama, it’s time for legalization,” one advocate says, looking directly into the camera.
NORML founder Stroup suggests that Mr. Obama is the ideal president under which to reform marijuana laws, because he smoked the drug when he was a teenager and “knows it didn’t destroy his life [or] turn him into some sort of reefer maniac.”
Stroup added that he doesn’t expect the president, who presently opposes legalization, to do anything “dramatic” on the issue, because he presently has more pressing priorities. But he argued that Mr. Obama could well take action if he is elected to a second term.
“I think within 5 years we’re going to stop arresting responsible marijuana smokers in this country,” he said.
And I think that could happen, but it will because we demand it to happen, not because the president is going to pursue it as part of his possible second term agenda. By then we hope we’re recovering from an economic crisis, and if elected to a second term, I see President Obama pursuing health care reform with his mandate. Maybe he goes so far as to codify federal tolerance of state medical marijuana, but I don’t see him moving a bit on legalization for those of us too healthy to smoke pot.
Unless he is forced to. That’s why we’re here, building this movement to the point where denying it is more politically hazardous than accepting it. We’ve moved the issue of legalization from heresy to nonsense to serious discussion. The internet and tremendous research archived by groups like NORML have given average people a way to learn the truth and to communicate anonymously about marijuana. Informed people with open minds always come to the same conclusion: there is no good reason to punish adults for smoking marijuana.
After the reply from DA Holders office about how the “change” in policy would affect Charlie Lynch’s sentencing the feds stated (aprox not a quote) that they found no error in their case and that they should proceed against him. This was on the 17th of April 2009. Now you tell me….if they can continue to sentence Charlie whats to stop them from doing this to anyone? I see no “change” in policy at all except for a change in smokescreens…………..
I just don’t know about the assumption that President Obama will be more open to and out-spoken about legalizing in his 2nd term. Who’s to say that if he makes it to a 2nd term, he might expend most of his energy trying not to rock the boat too much so he can use his “political capital” on another issue or try and help get another Democrat (perhaps someone in his administration) in as the next POTUS? If cannabis legalization were to happen in his career as POTUS, it would probably be due to his hand being forced by Congressional or state legislations and the will of the people.
I know he hasn’t been in office that long, which is why I hate thinking like this b/c it makes me seem cynical (I’m a supporter), but from what I’ve seen so far the Obama Administration is a bunch of political sissies. They talk a good game beforehand but when it’s time to play they take the safe or less threatening route. And not just on the legalization and “War on Drugs” issues but on others like closing Guantanamo, convicting torturers, war in Iraq/Afghanistan, etc.
I guess moderate politics does have downsides, you lose some of your spine.