[420 Girl]

Republican gubernatorial candidate Phil Moffett said Friday he's willing to "go to the carpet" to legalize the production of industrial hemp in Kentucky.

The Louisville businessman voiced support for industrial hemp in a question and answer session with libertarian voters in Lexington on Thursday and again Friday in an interview with The Associated Press.

"We're going to have to challenge the federal authority to keep us from growing a legitimate crop," he said. "Industrial hemp is not a drug, so it shouldn't be regulated by the DEA or any other federal authority."

Moffett is one of two Kentucky gubernatorial candidates who have expressed support for hemp farming. Lexington attorney Gatewood Galbraith, a perennial candidate running as an independent, has promoted industrial hemp for years.

It's a stand that most politicians in Kentucky have been unwilling to take.

"Talking about hemp makes it easy to tag you as pro-marijuana," said University of Kentucky political scientist Stephen Voss. "It's a deceptive tag, but it's the leap that people make in their minds. It opens you up to cheap attacks. On the other hand, it's a signal to people that you're open-minded, and looked into the issue enough to know it's not about drugs."

Industrial hemp, a cousin to marijuana, is used to make paper, lotion and other products. It is illegal because it contains trace amounts of the mind-altering chemical tetrahydrocannabinol that makes marijuana intoxicating.

"It's a farm product that can be used in a number of different ways to create jobs, but it's also a way to get the federal government farther off our back," Moffett said Friday. "Right now, the Drug Enforcement Agency does not allow hemp to be grown, and it would be a great test case for us to fight against the federal government to be able grow a completely legitimate crop that the federal government has decided they don't believe is worthy of planting."

Moffett made clear that, while he advocates industrial hemp production, he doesn't favor legalization of marijuana. He said he also opposes legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes "on an official level."

"But on a personal level, if someone were dying of cancer and marijuana was the only way they could find comfort, I'm not going to get in the way," he said. "There's a humanitarian aspect to this."


NewsHawk: MedicalNeed: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: BusinessWeek - Business News, Stock Market & Financial Advice
Author: ROGER ALFORD
Contact: Business Week Online: Contact Us
Copyright: 2010 Bloomberg L.P.
Website:Moffett goes on record supporting industrial hemp - BusinessWeek


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