Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul drew cheers from supporters in North Dakota Monday while making a pitch for free market economics to be applied to farmers, allowing them to grow alternative crops such as hemp.
“There is no reason, in a free society, that farmers shouldn’t be allowed to raise hemp. Hemp is a good product,” said Mr. Paul Monday, The Associated Press reports.
It is illegal to grow hemp in the U.S. because of its relation to marijuana, however some states, including North Dakota, have urged the Drug Enforcement Association to allow the cultivation of hemp. The DEA considers hemp to be a controlled substance.
There are several states that issue licenses to cultivate hemp, however it is still considered an illegal practice by the federal government.
However, Mr. Paul argues that hemp does have beneficial uses, the crop is used to manufacture clothing, paper, lotions and other products in Canada and other nations throughout the world.
The Texas congressman’s comments about hemp coincide with his call for less government involvement in domestic matters. He has been one of the biggest opponents to President Barack Obama’s healthcare law, arguing that it allows too much government involvement in Americans’ access to healthcare.
“The more socialized a system is, the worse the property is, and the worse the environment is,” said Mr. Paul on Monday. “We should never be bashful about saying we believe in property rights…and we don’t have to give one inch and say that we’re careless with the environment, because you don’t have a right to pollute your neighbor’s property.”
Mr. Paul has been a critic of the U.S. drug laws throughout his time in Congress, and along the campaign trail. He believes that drug laws should be set by individual states, not the federal government.
In June of 2011, he co-sponsored a bill with U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat, that called for removing marijuana from the list of federally regulated substances.
Last week in the state of Washington, he called for an end to the “war on drugs.”
North Dakota is one of ten states holding its Republican primary election on Super Tuesday in March.
Mr. Paul is trailing his rival candidates in recent national polls of Republican voters, but has vowed to stay in the primary race through the Republican National Convention in August.
The Texas congressman will join all of the remaining candidates in Arizona on Wednesday for a nationally televised debate moderated by CNN.
