Cracking the door on medicinal marijuana in Georgia | Political Insider blog

Even in Georgia, we are experiencing the first stirrings of official curiosity. Josh McKoon, R-Columbus, one of the younger members of the state Senate, has proposed a bit of fact-finding on medicinal uses for marijuana. And whether Georgia’s limited 1980s-era law, allowing the use of pot for the treatment of glaucoma and cancer, ought to be expanded.

“There’s not a piece of legislation. What I’m interested in doing is having a hearing so we can bring some medical experts forward to tell us, one way or the other,” McKoon said.

One potential witness: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the Emory University neurosurgeon/journalist whose CNN documentary, “Weed,” aired a few months ago. The 45-minute report is a kind of antidote to “Reefer Madness,” the 1930s cult classic that helped put marijuana on the federal list of banned substances.

Gupta showed how pot – or its refined ingredients – could help control some seizures in children. He now argues that researchers have overemphasized marijuana’s dangers, and ignored its potential benefits.

The CNN piece sparked McKoon’s interest. “I see [Gupta] as a sober-minded person. That got my attention,” the state lawmaker said.

“I’ve had constituents who have children with seizure disorder. I’ve had constituents who are undergoing chemotherapy treatments who say it would be helpful for pain,” McKoon said. “I just want to separate the facts from fiction. You could have a handful of these anecdotal stories without really knowing for sure.”

For the moment, leaders in the state Capitol appear willing to let McKoon proceed with the hearings, which the senator hopes to hold during the 40-day legislative session that begins Monday.

“I want to look at the science. I want to look at the medicine,” House Speaker David Ralston said last week. Senate President pro tem David Shafer, R-Duluth, likewise appears amenable.

“I have never been an advocate for liberalizing marijuana laws, but I am open to our studying potential medical applications,” Shafer said in an emailed statement. “It is unfortunate that some states have clouded the issue by using a medical justification to effectively legalize recreational use.”

Among the Capitol’s authority figures, Gov. Nathan Deal was the most wary. “I think it’s a subject that needs very detailed discussion. I’ve heard mixed reports,” the governor said Friday. “If we amend the law, I don’t want to create a significant problem that expands marijuana use in the state. I don’t think a majority of voters want that.”

McKoon said he can’t see himself ever voting to legalize marijuana for recreational use. But he agrees that, as with gay marriage, it is the increasing influence of libertarian conservatives within the GOP that makes a reassessment of marijuana use possible.

“If I had four town hall meetings in my district, maybe at one of those town hall meetings someone would stand up and ask about legalized marijuana,” he said. “And I think that those folks would self-identify as liberty-movement Republicans.”