Warren backs medical marijuana 'with the right restrictions'

Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren (D) said Monday that she favors legalizing medical marijuana, provided the law has "the right restrictions" to prevent people who aren't actually sick from getting the drug.

Speaking with Boston talk radio station WTKK-FM, Warren recalled holding her father's hand as he died from cancer and explained "there was some conversation" about whether medical marijuana would have helped him.

"It puts me in a position to say, if there's something a physician can prescribe that can help someone who is suffering, I am in favor of that," she said. "I want to make sure they've got the right restrictions, it should be like getting any other prescription drug, that there's careful control over it. But I think it's really hard to watch someone suffer that you love."

Voters in Massachusetts will decide whether to legalize medical marijuana on Election Day. Warren previously said she opposes outright legalization of marijuana.

She also told WTKK-FM that she supports another controversial ballot initiative that would allow physician-assisted suicide. Her opponent, Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA), opposes both initiatives.

A poll published last week by Suffolk University found Warren leading Brown 48 percent to 44 percent.

Another recent survey by the left-leaning Public Policy Polling group found that Massachusetts voters widely favor medical marijuana, 58 percent to 27 percent.

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(H/T: Boston Globe)

Photo: Wikimedia Commons.