JOHNSON TO DEBATE MEDICAL-MARIJUANA LAWS ON RADIO

Gov. Gary Johnson will be in the national spotlight with his views about
drug-law reform once again next month when he debates the new head of the
federal Drug Enforcement Administration, Asa Hutchinson, on a national
radio show.

The debate is scheduled for 4 p.m. Sept. 10 at The University of New
Mexico's Continuing Education Conference Center, 1634 University Blvd. The
debate is free and open to the public. Questions from the audience will be
allowed.

The show will be broadcast sometime in the fall on Justice Talking, a
weekly show on National Public Radio hosted by radio journalist Margot
Adler. It will be available over the Internet at www.justicetalking.org.

Johnson has appeared in several national forums over the past two years,
calling for liberalization of drug laws.

Hutchison, until taking the DEA job this year, was a congressman from
Arkansas. On the drug issue, he is Johnson's polar opposite.

Hutchison recently called for increased enforcement of federal marijuana
laws in states that allow the medical use of marijuana.

Johnson backed legislation that would have set up a medical-marijuana program.

According to a news release from the Lindesmith Center, "The debate will
cover a broad range of drug-policy issues, including mandatory minimum
sentencing, incarceration versus treatment, legalization of certain
substances and quantities, and whether our federal government should
emphasize prevention and education or drug interdiction."

The event is sponsored by KUNM-FM 89.9, UNM's School of Law and the
National AIDS Brigade.