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LEGALIZING MARIJUANA FOR RECREATIONAL USE OK WITH GOP STATE SENATE CANDIDATE

NEW BLOOMFIELD - State Senate candidate John DiSanto on Monday night trashed the decades long "war on drugs" and said he supported legalizing marijuana for recreational use.  John DiSanto says he supports legalizing marijuana John DiSanto, a GOP candidate running for the 15th state Senate District nomination, talks about supporting legalizing marijuana for recreational use following a March 28, 2016 debate.

DiSanto, a Republican running for the 15th state Senate District nomination, disputed that marijuana was a gateway drug and said that the federal government's "war on drugs" only has exacerbated the problem.

"We're spending so much money fighting a war that's never going to be won," DiSanto said.  "...  There's no difference if somebody wants to smoke a little bit of marijuana or drink some wine on their back porch.  It's just a non-argument."

DiSanto's support in legalizing small amounts of marijuana for recreational use was one of the few areas of disagreement in Monday night's debate between the 56-year-old central Pennsylvania developer and his opponent Andrew Lewis, a 29-year-old Army veteran who runs a drywall business in Lower Paxton Township.

Lewis said it would be "foolish" to legalize recreational use of marijuana in the state.

"It destigmatizes drug use," Lewis said.  "There is some evidence that shows that it is a gateway drug."

Lewis and DiSanto are the only two candidates seeking the GOP nomination for the 15th state Senate District seat in the April 26 primary election, and their debate brought a standing-room-only crowd to the Carson Long Military Academy's Centennial Hall in Perry County's New Bloomfield.  Democratic State Sen.  Rob Teplitz, who currently holds the 15th state Senate District seat, faces challenger Alvin Q.  Taylor in the primary election.

Following the debate, DiSanto said the amount of money that's been spent policing marijuana and jailing people for it wasn't a good use of taxpayer dollars.  Still, he said the increased use of drugs needs to be controlled, and he doesn't favor legalizing other drugs.

Both candidates said they support legalizing medical marijuana.  Such legislation currently is moving through the legislature and has gained the support of the state House, state Senate and Gov.  Tom Wolf.

"I appreciate the efforts of Sen.  [Mike] Folmer and others who have ushered this through the Senate, and I think we need to continue to strengthen the bill until it's passed and signed into law," Lewis said.  "Honestly, we need to reduce barriers to entry into this market so we can get treatment out as quickly as possible to our veterans and folks suffering with these chronic conditions."