Pubdate: Fri, 05 Apr 2013
Source: Columbus Dispatch (OH)
Copyright: 2013 The Columbus Dispatch
Contact:  http://www.dispatch.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/93
Author: Rob Hotakainen
Page: 3

MAJORITY IN U.S. FAVOR LEGALIZING POT

WASHINGTON - Only five months after Washington state and Colorado 
voted to legalize marijuana for recreational use, a poll released 
yesterday found that a majority of Americans now agree and say it 
should be legal to smoke the drug.

And, as Attorney General Eric Holder tries to figure out how to 
respond to the new laws, the poll had more good news for voters in 
the two states: Sixty percent of Americans say the U.S. government 
should not enforce federal drug laws in any state that has voted to 
legalize pot.

The poll found a strong consensus among people of all political 
persuasions for the federal government not to intervene: 64 percent 
of those who identified as independents, 59 percent of Democrats and 
57 percent of Republicans.

Overall, 52 percent of Americans now say marijuana should be legal, 
while 45 percent say it should remain illegal, according to the poll 
conducted in mid-March by the Pew Research Center.

The center said it was the first time in more than four decades of 
polling on the issue that legalized marijuana had won majority support.

And the poll found a sharp decline in the percentage of Americans who 
believe that marijuana is a "gateway" drug that leads users to try 
harder drugs such as cocaine.

It's mainly younger Americans who are propelling the drive to 
legalize the drug, with 65 percent of adults born since 1980 backing 
the idea. That compares with 36 percent for the same age group five years ago.

The poll found that support for legalizing marijuana rose by 11 
points among all age groups since 2010. That's a huge change since a 
1969 Gallup survey found only 12 percent backing legalized marijuana, 
while 84 percent were opposed.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom