CAPITOL RALLY OPPOSES MARIJUANA BALLOT ISSUE

Ex-Drug Czar Bennett Joins Protest, Says Pot Has No Medical Benefits

Former U.S. drug czar Bill Bennett led a rally Tuesday to urge opposition
to a November ballot proposal to legalize marijuana for "debilitating
medical conditions."

Joined at the Capitol by law officers, prosecutors and legislators, Bennett
argued that the measure was nothing more than a foot in the door to
legalize marijuana.

"Although it's couched in terms of medical use, the eventual result will be
increased drug use," said Bennett, whose comments on the Statehouse steps
came only minutes after the Senate voted 29-3 for a resolution opposing
"any effort to mandate in the Constitution of Colorado that marijuana be
described as medicine."

But opposition from the Senate and other opponents won't stop the measure
from getting on the ballot, if Coloradoans for Medical Rights gets enough
petition signatures to the Secretary of State's office.

Group members Marty Chilcutt and Dr. Marshall Stiles III have taken steps
for a ballot measure but have not collected the more than 55,000 signatures
needed.

The proposal -- which has also been criticized by those who want more
broad-range uses of marijuana -- limits how much marijuana a person can
possess and requires that a patient meet all criteria, including a
physician's authorization.

It could be used for conditions such as cancer, glaucoma, AIDS and other
illnesses if a doctor declares it might benefit the patient.

"I know some of the political people are opposed to it," Chilcutt said.
"They need to talk to the patients -- the people that are using it
medically. I've talked to patients with epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and
cancer."

Rally participants included State Treasurer Bill Owens and businessman
Terry Walker, both Republican candidates for governor; District Attorneys
Bill Ritter of Denver and Bob Grant of Arapahoe County; Arapahoe County
Sheriff Pat Sullivan; House majority leader Norma Anderson, R-Lakewood; and
Senate majority leader Jeff Wells, R-Colorado Springs.

"Just say no to those petition pushers," Owens said. "We don't want to
follow California's lead in legalizing pot."

Bennett said marijuana "has never been scientifically demonstrated to
provide medical relief from any medical condition -- at the very least no
more relief than other licensed drugs that are much less prone to abuse."

NOTE: An accompanying photo shows 10-year-old Kathleen Paulsen holding a
sign that says "Pot is not medicine." Not mentioned in the caption: Paulsen
is the daughter of Chris Paulsen, a former legislator who is serving as a
political consultant to the opposition campaign.