America turns against the Drug War, and particularly a federal Drug War. David Frum, a day late, a dollar short again:
As the Obama administration mulls its response to marijuana legalization in Colorado and Washington, the latest Reason-Rupe Public Opinion Survey finds that most Americans think the federal government should not interfere. Asked if the feds should arrest people who use marijuana in the states that have legalized it, 72 percent of respondents said no. More strikingly, by a margin of 2 to 1, the respondents said the federal government should not arrest newly legal growers or sellers either. President Obama has said there are no plans to go after pot smokers, which the federal government almost never does anyway, but he has not said how state-licensed suppliers will be treated.
Opposition to federal interference was even stronger than support for legalization. While 47 percent favored “legalizing marijuana for recreational use” and 53 percent said “the government should treat marijuana the same as alcohol,” 68 percent said the feds should leave state-legal growers alone and 64 percent said the same about state-legal sellers.