"Bill Maher: Can you give me a good reason why, in a free and fair society, marijuana should be illegal?

Dodd: Well, Bill, I've taken the position, certainly with medical use of marijuana, that it ought to be allowed. And many states, I think 12 or 13 states allow that today. In fact, we just had a huge debate in the committee in which I serve dealing with the issue. And I've strongly advocated that these states not be biased or prejudiced because they allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes."
Nov. 1, 2007 Chris Dodd

"I checked with the FDA [Food and Drug Administration]. The FDA says marijuana has no additive medical benefit of any kind, that the illegal trafficking of marijuana is so great that it makes much more sense to keep it illegal. I will keep it illegal."
Oct. 30, 2007 Rudy Giuliani

"Marijuana should be made legal. Addiction is a public health issue, not a criminal issue. As such, it should be treated by health care professionals, not law enforcement."
Oct. 19, 2007 Mike Gravel

"You've asked me the question about medical marijuana...my concern is, as much as I want to see something happen that would ease your pain, I'm not sure and I've not been convinced with medical evidence by independent research...that clearly says that it is more effective than other forms of pain medication, whether it's narcotic or analgesic. And so what I want to do is, if somebody can present to me scientifically and objectively, then I would certainly give a different consideration... I think the question is, would I favor the legalization at a federal level, and until there's some stronger scientific evidence, I'm reluctant to do that."
Sep. 29, 2007 Mike Huckabee

"Absolutely. I've spent much of my life fighting -- successfully -- to achieve that goal [of legal medical marijuana]."
Oct. 29, 2007 Steve Kubby

"Well, four years go when there were raids in California, I as a member of the Congress objected to that. And, of course, it's a matter between doctors and patients, and if doctors want to prescribe medical marijuana to relieve pain, compassion requires that the government support that. And so as president of the United States, I would make sure that our Justice Department was mindful that we should be taking a compassionate approach.

I want to go one step further, because this whole issue of drugs in our society is misplaced. Drugs have infected the society, but I think we need to look at it more as a medical and a health issue than as a criminal justice issue."
Aug. 9, 2007 Dennis Kucinich

"Every medical expert I know of, including the AMA [American Medical Association], says that there are much more effective and much better treatments for pain than medical marijuana...I still would not support medical marijuana because I don't think that the preponderance of medical opinion in America agrees with [the] assertion that it's the most effective way of treating pain."
Sep. 30, 2007 McCain, John

"Yes, medical marijuana as a medical option should be made available to anyone to whom it will help. It is somewhat ridiculous that people with life-threatening or life-ending diseases are often forced into criminal activities in order to ease the pain of their daily suffering."
Oct. 30, 2007 Frank McEnulty

"After deferring to the DEA [Drug Enforcement Administration], your release reads that, 'FDA is the sole federal agency that approves drug products as safe and effective for intended indications.' Why then has the FDA failed to respond to the 1999 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report which concluded that marijuana's active components are potentially effective in treating pain, nausea, the anorexia of AIDS wasting, and other symptoms, and should be tested rigorously in clinical trials?

It perplexes us that even though the FDA is responsible for protecting public health, the agency has failed to respond adequately to the IOM's findings seven years after the study's publication date. Additionally, this release failed to make note of the FDA's Investigational New Drug (IND) Compassionate Access Program, which allowed patients with certain medical conditions to apply with the FDA to receive federal marijuana. Currently, seven people still enlisted in this program continue to receive marijuana through the federal government.

The existence of this program is an example of how the FDA could allow for the legal use of a drug, such as medical marijuana, without going through the 'well-controlled' series of steps that other drugs have to go through if there is a compassionate need."
Apr. 27, 2005 Ron Paul

"I support a sensible, compassionate plan that makes medical marijuana available to patients suffering from life-threatening diseases. Such a plan must have proper safeguards and restrictions against abuse. I oppose any plan to decriminalize any drug that is currently illegal for recreational use."
Feb. 7, 2007 Bill Richardson

"Yes. In my opinion government agencies such as the FDA, and DEA stand in the way to American's health with all their regulations. Regulations delay and prohibit pain-relieving drugs and potentially helpful pharmaceuticals/treatments from being available to the American people. The federal government has no constitutional authority to be involved in healthcare, I believe allowing the government to control our access to health treatments and research is one of the biggest barriers to our health. We need health freedom, which means an end to all government involvement in this area. Specifically, in answer to your question, marijuana should be legal for any purpose. I will end the 'War on Drugs.' I will end the suffering, deaths, and injustice imposed upon Americans by this insane policy. By executive order I intend to pardon people who have harmed no other person and are now incarcerated due to non-violent drug offenses."
Nov. 12, 2007 Christine Smith