Carol Moseley Braun, who served as a U.S. senator from Illinois from 1992 to 1998, is something of a puzzle. In a 1994 letter to a constituent, she suggested that marijuana should be "decriminalized." But she never acted on the idea, and she carefully avoided taking a clear position when medical marijuana controversies arose later in her term.

Although a critic of mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders, Sharpton has not spoken on the issue of medical marijuana. It's hard to imagine he wouldn't be a supporter, but until he speaks to this issue, we cannot be sure.

Asked about medical marijuana as he campaigned for president in 1999, George W. Bush said he believes "each state can choose that decision as they so choose" (sic). Yet the Bush administration has arrested, prosecuted, and imprisoned medical marijuana patients and providers at an alarming rate. Administration officials have aggressively campaigned against local and state proposals to protect medical marijuana patients.

Retired Army General Clark recently became the tenth candidate in the race for president. Because Clark has only vaguely spelled out his position on the issue of medical marijuana, his grade is tentative until he states what his policy will be with greater specificity.

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean would direct the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to study medical marijuana and report its findings within a year. Dean would impose a moratorium on Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) raids on seriously ill medical marijuana patients during that time.

Edwards has publicly stated that he thinks it would be "irresponsible" to end the Justice Department's policy of arresting patients and caregivers who defy federal law. In late August, Edwards' campaign repeatedly attempted to block peaceful protesters with Granite Staters for Medical Marijuana (GSMM) from expressing their views during campaign events in public spaces. While "F" grades are reserved only for candidates whose actions cause the arrest of patients, Edwards earned a "D-" because he would jail patients, if elected president.

While Gephardt voted for a 1998 resolution condemning state efforts to legalize medical marijuana, he recently stated he supports states' rights to protect seriously ill medical marijuana patients and would stop the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) raids on medical marijuana patients in the states that allow it for seriously ill patients.

Kerry would stop the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) raids on seriously ill medical marijuana patients as president. Kerry has previously said he favors federal legislation to allow people with cancer, AIDS, and other serious illnesses to have medical marijuana, with their doctors' approval.

For the first time since the days of Jimmy Carter, a prominent presidential candidate has called for an end to marijuana prohibition. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), a progressive and therefore long-shot candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, quietly announced on his campaign web site last week that, if elected, he would end federal prohibitions on the use of marijuana by adults and would instead move to regulate it like alcohol.

"Statistical evidence shows that marijuana use follows a pattern very similar to that of alcohol," wrote Kucinich. "Most marijuana users do so responsibly, in a safe, recreational context. These people lead normal, productive lives -- pursuing careers, raising families and participating in civic life... A Kucinich administration would reject the current paradigm of 'all use is abuse' in favor of a drug policy that sets reasonable boundaries for marijuana use by establishing guidelines similar to those already in place for alcohol... A Kucinich administration would work to implement a drug policy that removes responsible recreational users and medical users of marijuana from the criminal justice system, in order to redirect resources toward the following goals:

* Enforce penalties for those who provide marijuana to minors.
* Enforce penalties for those who endanger the rights of others through irresponsible use, such as driving under the influence.
* Develop drug treatment programs focused on rehabilitation, rather than incarceration.
* Support the efforts of state governments in developing innovative approaches to drug policy.
* Improve drug education by emphasizing science over scare tactics.
* Implement a Department of Justice program that would review the records of, and consider for sentence reduction or release, inmates convicted for nonviolent marijuana offenses.

Kucinich has come full circle on the subject, having voted for the 1998 resolution condemning state medical marijuana initiatives.

Lieberman cosponsored a 1998 U.S. Senate resolution condemning state efforts to legalize medical use of marijuana. We have upgraded Lieberman from a "D-" to a "D+" based on his recent positive statement about medical marijuana, though Lieberman must make a stronger statement about protecting patients before he moves out of the "D" range.