Rick Santorum Unclear On Medical Marijuana Laws

At a campaign stop in Concord, N.H. on Thursday, GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum spent more than an hour sparring with college students over everything from gay rights to pot, though he struggled to explain why he won't support states' rights to allow medical marijuana.

When questioned by a student wondering why conservatives tend to favor states' rights except in the case of medical marijuana, Santorum confessed that he does not know his medical cannabis laws.

Without an informed opinion about policy, Santorum defended his argument using personal experience, according to Talking Points Memo. "I went to college too," he said during the College Convention 2012 forum, organized by New England College.

The response did not go over well, eliciting boos from the audience, and that's not a surprise.

Fifty percent of Americans favor legalizing marijuana, according to a recent Gallup poll, with support for legalization among Americans under the age of 30 as high as 62 percent. Gallup has found that Americans are especially likely to favor legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes, and 70 percent favor making it legal for doctors to prescribe marijuana to reduce pain and suffering, according to a survey last year.

HuffPost has compiled a slideshow highlighting GOP candidates' positions on the issue. Most have more to say than Santorum.

Also on HuffPost:

 

 

Comments

[Scipio202]

08:43 PM on 01/13/2012

Then later on Rick clarified his position on the subject and said he's for medical marijuana as long as you're not a homosexual.

[DMT8665]

12:49 PM on 01/09/2012

Rick Santorum is "unclear" about a lot of issues...

He is unclear about the Mj issue cuz this is the first time he as ever heard of the plant.

Ron Paul in 2012

[dicktomharry]

02:22 PM on 01/08/2012

Boy what a bunch of dew boys.

[FightingTheRight]

12:43 PM on 01/07/2012

“In Michigan, Republican­s are trying to circumvent the medical marijuana law by passing legislatio­n requiring that the patients have an ongoing relationsh­ip with the Doctor who signs their paperwork.

It sounds reasonable until you find out that Doctors who are creditiale­d with hospitals that get federal funding or reimbursem­ents such as Medicare, are not allowed to sign that paper work.

This covers most general practition­ers, and specialist­, which leaves only the doctors who's practice is based on Medical Marijuana patients, as the only alternativ­e. Doctors who most patients do not have an ongoing relationsh­ip with.”

[rspen00]

06:11 AM on 01/07/2012

Pot heads are going up in smoke. Not caring about love, life, or anybody,or anything but yourself.
Quit comparing yourself with people that are sick,and may need to use it for medical purposes.
Just because some artist, singers, or composers may have smoked pot or did other drugs, is no excuse to waste you life away doing drugs of any kind. One day this country will be smoking dope, not knowing or paying any attention anything, or anyone outside our own little world, when along comes a nation that will put us all in chains, and we want even know, or care untill it's too late.

[dicktomharry]

02:25 PM on 01/08/2012

You are so blind you sound stupid.

[USA Radical]

10:11 PM on 01/08/2012

you are, obviously, already high

[Rogue Squirrel]

12:08 AM on 01/07/2012

You can't legistate morality! Vote Dr. Ron Paul !!!

[mngnman]

12:58 AM on 01/07/2012

he does with abortion

[PaulInMiami]

06:35 PM on 01/06/2012

All drug users are funding terrorism. I agree with Gingrich and still plan to vote for him, although I like Santorum also.

[FightingTheRight]

12:45 PM on 01/07/2012

Only if they are buying drugs that come from outside of the U.S.

So I guess you would be for legalizing drugs, to get their distribution, and profits out of the terrorist hands.

[starchildjg24]

04:56 PM on 01/13/2012

You will have to use a write in, because he won't be on the ballot.

[AlfredE69]

02:37 PM on 01/06/2012

Rick, I just smoked a small bowl of cannabis and now I'm enjoying a dish of Ben and Jerry's Pumpkin Cheesecake Ice Cream. Will you report me to the narc Obama?

[Djay0252]

04:30 PM on 01/06/2012

No, Obama won't and neither will I but the DOJ will get on your case since they have to prove they are worth anyrthing.

[AlfredE69]

06:30 PM on 01/06/2012

But he had Willie Nelson arrested!

[donnasayeth]

07:07 AM on 01/16/2012

How come you are flaunting your use of an illegal drug? You have broken a law, you don't think you need to be held accountable?

[RichardinJax]

12:45 PM on 01/06/2012

Remember..all the Pot stuff is a bit silly. You can have all of it you want..smoke it all day as long as you don't get stupid. That is the way it is. The heat needs to keep up its image but they dare not keep you from your Herb.

Its not legal to go 40 in a 35, drink a beer on the beach or download Pirates of the Caribbean from a bit torrent site. I did all 3 this weekend. It is also not legal to grow Black Widow, Yumbolt or LadyBurn 1974.

But folks do this and they are never going to stop. Who gives Sh+T about the law? The Good Folks up the street cheat on their taxes, the Priests have huge kiddie porn collections and some folks pursue alternative horticultural hobbies.

Some people smoke dope..some dopes smoke people. None..no one..will ever change any of that.

[donnasayeth]

07:11 AM on 01/16/2012

Yes, that's because the everyday citizen is afraid to hold those you listed accountable. You know why they don't, they don't want to be attacked by verbal abuse, physical abuse, such as, murder.
From what you are saying, it sounds like we are one lawless society. People can change, all they need is courage.

[LuLou Murder]

12:18 PM on 01/06/2012

To be fair, Rick's unclear on a whole host of issues.

[Reality always bites]

02:33 PM on 01/06/2012

Honesty is a virtue. Why should any candidate know everything. I learn something new every day. It takes a bit of nerve to state honestly [Especially in front of a bunch of students. (Who know everything-that's why they are students) that you do not know medical cannabis laws].
Is that not a bit different to actually smoking dope to get off your head!

[relentless63]

12:11 PM on 01/06/2012

A lack of clarity never stops a Republican from opining. What`s an imagination for? This resistance to information, especially when he exposes himself in a seat of learning, is truly disgraceful. Marijuana law reform is on a lot of lips. He should be well versed in these policies. Things get much more complicated. For the sake of the barely surviving world, Obama 2012.

[AlfredE69]

02:38 PM on 01/06/2012

Obama is harassing medical marijuana patients and needs to go.

[RMForbes]

02:52 PM on 01/06/2012

That's not accurate and you know it. Please do some research on the actual federal process that would need to be addressed before cannabis can be removed from Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substance Act. The President can only order the federal agencies that are charged with evaluating the medical viability of cannabis to act but the Republican Lame Duck Congress changed the goal posts so high any real changes is almost impossible. Your simplified blame game feeds the prohibitionist's arguments and have nothing to do with reality.

[relentless63]

02:53 PM on 01/06/2012

How many sightings?
Is he acting alone?
Was he wearing a hat and carrying a bong?

[RichardinJax]

11:49 AM on 01/06/2012

Medical marijuana? It was an idea. But, it was the "legal growers" not the establishment that blew it.Medical shops were selling to the general public..but the kilo. This was well known. In California the growers were cautioned on ruining the Medical trade but they kept running those "pharmacies" like head shops.

There is nothing wrong with pot. But if you want to go forward with easing prosecution you aim efforts on relaxing prosecution of the user. If you promote sham "medical grows" you will go nowhere.

Why were the Medical growers growing White Widow, Kush and Hash Passion? Those are high THC low low CBD and CBN stains when compared to others more suited to medical use.

Why?

The Medical marijuana movement committed suicide. Folks like Santorum are NEVER going to tolerate pot because THEY DON'T SMOKE IT! If you want to move to tolerance you can be sure of failure if you flaunt getting stoned.

[relentless63]

12:24 PM on 01/06/2012

If getting stoned was such a horror, the world would have long ago disappeared in a fog of alcohol. History has proven that people want to get high. That global business worth billions of dollars, is, always has been, and always will be enjoyed by somebody. Did we learn nothing from prohibition?

[RichardinJax]

12:35 PM on 01/06/2012

We leaned a lot from prohibition..like how to make a still. Pot laws have kept the cost of Reefer high enough to ensue the stuff never goes away..as did prohibition of Alcohol.

So..get a radiator..some copper pipe and some corn..or a bunch of CFL's some potting soil and a Gro-Tent.

Pick you poison.

[slackhaus]

04:45 PM on 01/06/2012

That was my problem with the whole medical marijuana movement in San Francisco back in the 90's. I finally had to walk away from it because they were always working against their interests by constantly breaking the very rules they created. Of course what they really wanted and still do is full legalization.

[AlfredE69]

11:35 AM on 01/06/2012

Rick, ask Obama, he'll tell you how to harass medical marijuana patients.

[mngnman]

01:01 AM on 01/07/2012

Is he harrasing you......hes not on my case.......or do u know someone......one

[Sandgnat]

10:48 AM on 01/06/2012

Pot, booze, music, rock climbing, Oxys, porn, huffing paint, Jesus, we all have our highs, some admittedly more dangerous than others. But trying to ram your own drug of choice down everyone else's throat is never a good idea. Rick gets high on his Jesus delusions, and is simply unable to grasp that some people don't, that they might get as much out of a bud buzz or a blues riff as he does a 2200 year old Jewish best-seller, People like him view their way as the only way, and are the very reason our country and it's constitution came to be. Instead of being elected, the man should be tarred and feathered and run out of town on a rail.

[fumes]

10:53 AM on 01/06/2012

where ya gonna find a rail?

[Sandgnat]

10:55 AM on 01/06/2012

a 4x4 from Lowe's will do in a pinch

[relentless63]

12:20 PM on 01/06/2012

F/F. So very well said, F/F. So very well said Sandgnat!

[WhosKiddingWhom]

10:40 AM on 01/06/2012

Ricki's starting to look more and more like a man on the edge; or the fool on the hill.

We'll limit government, all right, except when it comes to YOUR rights. We're jist gonna use it sparingly (gubment power), you know, jist fo' keepin' ya frum sinnin'. An' fo' afta ya sin, too.

[RMForbes]

02:59 PM on 01/06/2012

He always was but now he is getting more attention from the media.