All of a sudden, the effort to get serious momentum behind a medical marijuana initiative in Florida has credibility. Ubiquitous, committed, “For the People” trial lawyer John Morgan is now behind the campaign to get the issue on next year’s ballot as a constitutional amendment–and make Florida the country’s 19th state with a medical marijuana law.
Although anything containing the words “legal” and “marijuana” has more than its share of Tallahassee detractors and the capital doesn’t lack for Reefer Madness literalists, Morgan won’t exactly be tilting at public-policy windmills. His own pockets are plenty deep and he can tap into a serious fund-raising network to expedite the underwriting of petition gatherers. He would need nearly 700,000 valid signatures. Moreover, a recent poll by People United for Medical Marijuana showed more than 70 percent initiative support that transcended party, regional and demographic lines.
No, Florida isn’t Colorado or Washington, but it’s more than the sum total of its Tallahassee parts.