Barack Obama

Barack Obama
Barack Obama: ’When I was a kid I inhaled - that was the point’

Barack Obama is the first and only president to be voted Top CelebStoner.

Born on Aug. 4, 1961 in Honolulu, the 44th U.S. president earned the honor on the strength of the following resume:

• In his book, Dreams from My Father (1995), Obama wrote about his high school and college drug use: "Pot had helped, and booze; maybe a little blow when you could afford it."

• In a 2007 interview, Obama stated: "When I was a kid I inhaled frequently. That was the point."

• Speaking to Northwestern University students in 2004, Obama declared: "The War on Drugs has been an utter failure. We need to rethink and decriminalize our marijuana laws."

• In a letter to a constituent in 2006, Obama wrote: "I am aware of the argument that legalizing marijuana would make the drug more 'controlled' or safer, and that it may curb the violence associated with the sale of an illegal substance. I also appreciate that many physicians believe that medicinal marijuana can be helpful to some patients."

• In 2007, Obama told an activist in New Hampshire: "I would not have the Justice Department prosecuting and raiding medical marijuana users."

• In 2008, Obama clarified his position about medical marijuana: "The basic concept that using medical marijuana in the same way, with the same controls as other drugs prescribed by doctors, I think that's entirely appropriate. I would not punish doctors if it's prescribed in a way that is appropriate."

• When he became president in 2009, Obama instructed the Justice Department to stop raiding dispensaries in states where medical marijuana is legal.

The Obama adminstration backtrackerd on this promise in 2011 when U.S. Attorneys in California and other states began raiding dispensaries again, claiming they were not abiding by the law.

In his 2012 book, Barack Obama: The Story, David Maraniss wrote about Obama's early years as a pot smoker in Hawaii. He and his stoner friends called themselves the Choom Gang, which was their slang for smoking marijuana.

In reponse to legalization victories in Colorado and Washington (the same day he was re-elected in Novemeber), Obama stated: "It would not make sense for us to see a top priority as going after recreational users in states that have determined that it's legal."

Barack and Michelle Obama have two daughters, Sasha and Malia.

comments powered by Disqus
Steve Bloom

Steve Bloom

Publisher of CelebStoner.com, former editor of High Times and Freedom Leaf and co-author of Pot Culture and Reefer Movie Madness.