List of United States politicians who admit to cannabis use

From Wiki Weed
Jump to: navigation, search

Cannabis is a drug and, as hemp, a source for fibers, oil and seed. Prior to its prohibition, U.S. politicians known for growing hemp include some of the nation's Founding Fathers and presidents. Politicians who have admitted to recreational use of the drug during prohibition include mayors, governors, members of the House of Representatives, Senators and presidents.

List of politicians who farmed hemp

Name Lifetime Highest position Party
Benjamin Franklin 1706–1790 President of the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania Independent
Thomas Jefferson 1743–1826 President of the United States Democratic-Republican
Madison 1751–1836 President of the United States Democratic-Republican
Washington 1732–1799 President of the United States Independent

During prohibition

In the U.S., cannabis was initially grown for industrial reasons, though recreational use spread quickly during the 20th century. Harry J. Anslinger, Commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, responded to political pressure to ban marijuana at a nationwide level. The Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 created an expensive excise tax, and included penalty provisions and elaborate rules of enforcement to which marijuana, cannabis, or hemp handlers were subject. Mandatory sentencing and increased punishment were enacted when the United States Congress passed the Boggs Act of 1952 and the Narcotics Control Act of 1956.


During the counterculture of the 1960s, attitudes towards marijuana and drug abuse policy changed as use became widespread among "white middle-class college students". In Leary v. United States (1969), the Supreme Court held the Marihuana Tax Act to be unconstitutional since it violated the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution privilege against self-incrimination. In response, Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act as Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, which repealed the Marihuana Tax Act. In 1972, the National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse concluded that marijuana should be decriminalized, but that public use and driving while intoxicated should remain illegal. By the end of the decade, several states had decriminalized the drug, while many others weakened their laws against cannabis use.


However, a wave of conservatism during the 1980s allowed president Ronald Reagan to accelerate the War on Drugs during his presidency, prompting anti-drug campaigns such as the "Just Say No" campaign of First Lady Nancy Reagan. Federal penalties for cultivation, possession, or transfer of marijuana were increased by the Comprehensive Crime Control Act (1984), the Anti-Drug Abuse Act (1986), and the Anti-Drug Abuse Amendment Act (1988). Since California voters passed the Proposition 215 in 1996, which legalized medical cannabis, several states have followed suit. However, United States v. Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative (2001) rejected the common-law medical necessity defense to crimes enacted under the Controlled Substances Act because Congress concluded that cannabis has "no currently accepted medical use", and Gonzales v. Raich (2005) concluded that the Commerce Clause of the Constitution allowed the federal government to ban the use of cannabis, including medical use. Today, cannabis remains classified as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, and possession is punishable by up to one year in jail and a minimum fine of $1,000 for a first conviction.


Use by politicians during prohibition

Politicians that have admitted to recreational use during prohibition include mayors, governors, members of the House of Representatives, Senators and presidents.

Name Lifetime Highest position Party
Bruce Babbitt b. 1938 Governor of Arizona, United States Secretary of the Interior|Secretary of the Interior Democratic
Michael Bloomberg b. 1942 Mayor of New York City Independent
Bill Bradley b. 1943 Senator from New Jersey Democratic
George W. Bush b. 1946 President of the United States Republican
Jack Conway b. 1969 Attorney General of Kentucky Democratic
Paul Cellucci 1948–2013 Governor of Massachusetts Republican
Lincoln Chafee b. 1953 Senator from Rhode Island, List of Governors of Rhode Island|Governor of Rhode Island independent
Lawton Chiles 1930–1998 Senator from Florida, List of Governors of Florida|Governor of Florida Democratic
Bill Clinton b. 1946 President of the United States Democratic
Steve Cohen b. 1949 House of Representatives Democratic
Andrew Cuomo b. 1957 Governor of New York Democratic
Howard Dean b. 1948 Governor of Vermont, Chair of the Democratic National Committee Democratic
Joseph DeNucci b. 1939 Auditor of Massachusetts Democratic
Mary Donohue b. 1947 Lieutenant Governor of New York Republican
John Edwards b. 1953 Senator from North Carolina Democratic
Newt Gingrich b. 1943 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Republican
Al Gore b. 1948 Vice President of the United States Democratic
Gary Johnson b. 1953 Governor of New Mexico Libertarian
Joseph P. Kennedy b. 1952 House of Representatives Democratic
John Kerry b. 1943 Secretary of State Democratic
Ed Koch 1924–2013 House of Representatives, Mayor of New York City Democratic
Richard Lamm b. 1935 Governor of Colorado Democratic
Connie Mack III b. 1940 Senator from Florida Republican
Kyle E. McSlarrow b. 1960 Deputy Secretary of the [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy Republican
John Miller b. 1938 House of Representatives Republican
Susan Molinari b. 1958 House of Representatives Republican
Jim Moran b. 1945 House of Representatives Democratic
Evelyn Murphy b. 1940 Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts Democratic
Richard Neal b. 1949 House of Representatives Democratic
Barack Obama b. 1961 President of the United States Democratic
Sarah Palin b. 1964 Governor of Alaska Republican
George Pataki b. 1945 Governor of New York Republican
David Paterson b. 1954 Governor of New York Democratic
Edward W. Pattison 1932–1990 House of Representatives Democratic
Claiborne Pell 1918-2009 Senator from Rhode Island Democratic
Dana Rohrabacher b.1947 House of Representatives Republican
Rick Santorum b. 1958 Senator from Pennsylvania Republican
Arnold Schwarzenegger b. 1947 Governor of California Republican
William Scranton III b. 1947 Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania Republican
Bill Thompson b. 1953 New York City Comptroller Democratic
Peter G. Torkildsen b. 1958 House of Representatives Republican
Jesse Ventura b. 1951 Governor of Minnesota Independent

See also

Cannabis in the United States

Decriminalization of non-medical cannabis in the United States

Legal history of cannabis in the United States

List of British politicians who admit to cannabis use