John Kerry's stance on the legalization of marijuana

Issue: To date, 10 states within the United States have passed legislation allowing for marijuana to be used for medicinal purposes.

John Kerry:

Description of candidates' position: Although John Kerry has not stated whether or not he is officially for the legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes, he has done so because he is waiting for a concrete study to be done stating whether or not there truly were benefits to smoking marijuana. Kerry opposes President Bush in that he does not believe persons living in states where it is legal to smoke marijuana should be persecuted under federal law. John Kerry's website has no information on medical marijuana or his stance on the herb in general. As reported by the Associated Press on January 9, 2004, found at link

Quotation from the candidate: According to the Kerry website, "John Kerry and John Edwards will aggressively target drug traffickers and dealers and provide funding for coordinated regional efforts aimed at cracking down on drug trafficking," the campaign proclaims. "They will also adequately fund drug prevention and treatment, including innovative approaches to requiring treatment for offenders like drug courts." Found at link

Assessment of the proposal:

Positive: According to stopthedrugwar.org, "Kerry last year signed a letter with fellow Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy asking the DEA to approve the necessary licenses requested by the University of Massachusetts to perform medical marijuana research. While campaigning for the Democratic nomination in New Hampshire in January, Kerry said he would keep medical marijuana illegal until research to complete the FDA approval process was completed, but would not pursue medical marijuana prosecutions in states that have passed medical marijuana laws in the meantime." Found at link

Negative: According to John Walters, Director of White House Drug Control Policy, "Research has not demonstrated that smoked marijuana is safe and effective medicine. Legalizing smoked marijuana under the guise of medicine is scientifically irresponsible and contradictory to our high standards for approval of medications. We owe people with debilitating medical conditions the best that science has to offer - not the results of interest group lobbying and political compromise." March 24, 2003, found at link

Comparison: Bush's campaign also supplied a statement from then-press secretary Ari Fleischer at a 2001 press briefing. He said Bush "does not believe that it's appropriate to allow what is a controlled substance to be given to people in terms of medical marijuana. There are other effective ways, the president believes, to help people who suffer illness.''

Link to Bush's brief