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Minnesota Now with Cathy Wurzer
Cathy Wurzer and Aleesa Kuznetsov

Minnesotan discovers new insight into former President Richard Nixon’s views on marijuana

J. Edgar Hoover, Richard Nixon
FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and then-President Richard Nixon in 1971.
The Associated Press

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A Minnesota man has made a discovery that sheds light on the history of United States drug policy. Former President Richard Nixon, who started the war on drugs, privately said that marijuana was not dangerous.

“I know nothing about marijuana,” Nixon said in a recording from the Oval Office on March 6, 1973. “I know that it is not addictive and dangerous and all the rest of it and all the kids are in favor of legalizing it. On the other hand it is the wrong signal at this time.”

The Nixon tapes are in the public record as part of the Nixon Presidential Library, but these statements were unearthed by Minnesotan Kurtis Hanna and first reported in the New York Times. Kurtis Hanna works in the cannabis industry and is a lobbyist. He shares his findings with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

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We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.