Rand Paul: Marijuana Users Lose IQ Points and Lack Motivation
To the chagrin of libertarian supporters, Paul has said he doesn't support drug legalization
To the chagrin of libertarian supporters, Paul has said he doesn't support drug legalization
SOURCE: www.rawstory.com
AUTHOR: Eric W. Dolan
Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) said Monday he did not support the legalization of marijuana, though he did support some form of decriminalization.
"What I think is that if your kid or one of his friends goes out and gets caught with marijuana, sticking them in prison is a big mistake," he told Peter Robinson of the Hoover Institution. "So I don't really believe in prison sentences for these minor non-violent drug offenses, but I'm not willing to go all the way to say it is a good idea either. I think people who use marijuana all the time lose IQ points, I think they lose their drive to show up for work."
Paul, however, added that he believed individual states should be allowed to decide whether they wanted to legalize marijuana or not.
Much to the chagrin of his libertarian supporters, Paul has said he doesn't support drug legalization. Despite Paul's lack of support for legalization, many drug policy reformers view him as an ally because of his support for legislation to scale back the war on drugs.
During the Hoover Institution interview, Paul also said he supported overturning the Supreme Court's landmark Roe v. Wade ruling. He said abortion as well as same-sex marriage should be issues for the states to decide.