The nation’s largest organization in favor of marijuana legalization is formally endorsing the Libertarian Party’s nominee for president – Gary Johnson.
The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), whose mission is to reform federal laws to ensure states can determine their own marijuana policies, said Johnson was the obvious choice as the most pro-legalization candidate on the ballot.
MPP made clear its endorsement was on the sole issue of marijuana reform and did not amount to an endorsement of the candidate’s other policies.
“We don’t take a position — and we therefore don’t take into account a candidate’s position — on other issues, such as abortion, guns, gay rights, Iraq, taxes, or Social Security,” said MPP’s Executive Director Rob Kampia.
“Of the three presidential candidates who will appear on the ballot in all 50 states and D.C., Gary Johnson clearly has the best position on marijuana policy. When he first advocated for legalization in 1999, he was the highest-ranking public official in the U.S. to do so — as the sitting Republican governor of New Mexico, no less,” said Kampia.
“Legalization has been Johnson’s number-one issue for 17 years. MPP’s endorsement of Johnson was an easy call; the more difficult question is whether MPP should support a candidate who’s good on medical marijuana but bad on legalization, when the candidate is facing an opponent who’s bad on everything.”
In an interview with The Hill June 6, Johnson freely admitted he had used marijuana as “recently as a month ago” but promised he would not use the drug if he is sworn into the Oval Office in 2016. (RELATED: Gary Johnson Promises Not To Get High In The White House)
Johnson has been abstinent from alcohol for 30 years. Before running for president he was the executive of marijuana company Cannabis Sativa Inc.
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