Issue Position: Ending Marijuana Prohibition and the War on Drugs

Issue Position

The prohibition of so-called "controlled substances" has given rise to the same adverse consequences of Alcohol Prohibition in the 1920s. Our current drug policies are irrational and counterproductive, feeding violent illegal markets, public corruption, clogging of the courts and disrespect for the law. We've heard for decades how our drug laws are supposed to "protect the children" yet our high school and junior high school kids have easier access to prohibited drugs than adults! Meanwhile, we've been arresting more than 800,000 adults each year for marijuana possession alone. Already with a strong legislative record in drug policy reform, I will continue to champion the urgent need to end our prohibition-based drug policies and to bring marijuana back into the law, regulate it for adult use and extinguish the corrosive black market. It's time for an "exit strategy" for the failed War on Drugs.

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