Barack Obama may be the first acknowledged stoner to hold the highest office, but he continues to blunt the hopes of advocates for legalizing pot, reports Politico. In an interview with VICE news, the president reacted negatively to a suggestion that legalizing marijuana would be “the biggest part of your legacy,” His response: “First of all, it shouldn't be young people's biggest priority. You should be thinking about climate change, the economy, jobs, war and peace. Maybe way at the bottom you should be thinking about marijuana.”
Obama drew a distinction between his support of states' efforts to decriminalize marijuana and reverse the crackdown on nonviolent drug offenders and actually encouraging drug use. It is up to Congress, he said, to change pot's legal status. “Legalization or decriminalization is not a panacea,” he added, questioning whether it would work for drugs like meth and crack. “There is a legitimate, I think, concern, about the overall effects this has on society.”