PM JOKES HE MIGHT TRY MARIJUANA

WINNIPEG (CP) -- Prime Minister Jean Chretien says he doesn't know what it's
like to smoke pot but he may be willing to find out once it's no longer a
criminal offence.

Chretien, 69, joked about trying marijuana in an Ottawa interview with the
Winnipeg Free Press published in Friday's paper.

Chretien was asked how it felt to have bills to decriminalize marijuana and
legalize same-sex marriages as the exclamation points to his political career.

"The decriminalization of marijuana is making normal what is the practice,"
replied Chretien. "It is still illegal, but do you think Canadians want their
kids, 18 years-old or 17, who smoke marijuana once and get caught by the
police, to have a criminal record for the rest of their life?

"What has happened is so illogical that they are not prosecuted anymore. So
let's make the law adjust to the realities. It is still illegal, but they will
pay a fine. It is in synch with the times.

"I don't know what is marijuana. Perhaps I will try it when it will no longer
be criminal. I will have my money for my fine and a joint in the other hand."

On same-sex marriage, Chretien said he thinks it is better to err on the side
of giving more rights than taking away rights. But he didn't want to talk about
whether that view has caused him problems as a Catholic.

"My grandfather had been refused holy communion because he was a Liberal
organizer," he said. "For us, my mentality, my religion belongs to me and I
will deal personally with that. I am a public person in a very diverse society,
and I don't think I can impose every limit of my morality on others, because I
don't want others to impose their morality on me."

In a speech to Manitoba Liberals on Friday evening, Chretien made no mention of
his marijunana comments.

Instead, he looked back at his 40 years in politics and listed off what he
considers his government's biggest accomplishments -- boosting some social
programs, injecting more money into health care, ratifying the Kyoto accord on
climate change and implementing the national child benefit for low-income
families.

"This government has built the national child benefit, which is the most
significant new social program since medicare," he told the $400-a-plate party
fundraiser.

Chretien also warned that this week's Ontario election was a clear sign that
people want money spent on government programs, not large tax cuts.

"The people in Ontario were given a choice of further tax cuts at the expense
of public services, or more public services without further tax cuts. That is
what (Liberal Leader Dalton) McGuinty did.

"And he won a big majority."