Presidential Candidates’ View On Marijuana

The 2016 presidential field is starting to take shape, and many of the candidates are weighing in on the debate about marijuana.

Here’s a roundup of what the declared candidates have said about cannabis policy, as well as what they’ve admitted about their own marijuana consumption.

Hillary Clinton

The first lady and the former secretary of the United States admitted that marijuana is a valuable medicine. “I think we need to be clear about the benefits of marijuana for medical purposes” she said to CNN. She told that she believes there should be good availability of marijuana under proper circumstances for those who are in critical medical conditions.

For recreational use of cannabis, Hillary had to say that two of the states are experimenting with it and she would like to wait and see the evidence.

As the secretary of state, in 2011, Clinton answered a question about the marijuana legalization by saying that it is less likely to work. She expressed her wish to stop those who make lot of money from the business so that they do not harm the public for their own interest.

About using marijuana personally, she said that “absolutely not”. She did not try using it when she was young and would not want to start then too.

Ted Cruz

The Unites States senator is not in favor of marijuana legalization but told that it is the right of the states to end the prohibition.

In fact, Ted criticized President Obama for taking the matter of marijuana legalization so lightly. Broadly speaking, Cruz has a view that states should be free to legalize cannabis but he has not taken any legal steps to make the federal law in favor of his view.

As for his own association with marijuana, it was reported that he experimented once as a teenager and committed that it was a mistake. He has never tried marijuana since then.

Rand Paul

The candidate from Kentucky is one of those few people who participated actively in the reformation of marijuana laws. An example of this is the fact that he passed a bill which is intended to bring an end to the federal war about medical marijuana. Paul has introduced an act called The Compassionate Access, Research Expansion and Respect States Act to reschedule the marijuana laws and facilitate businesses, researches, importation and doctors.

However, he clarified that though he supports reformation of marijuana laws, he believes that using the drug is not at a good idea. He thinks that people using marijuana all the time degrade in their IQ.

He also indirectly admitted the usage of the drug when he was a kid.

Marco Rubio
The United States senator is in opposition to the decriminalization and legalization of marijuana. He believes that the country is already facing problems of substance abuse. He said “We already see the impact of alcoholism on families and now we want to add one more substance for people to use?”

Rubio did not want to answer questions about the personal usage of marijuana.