Steve Katz (Photo: NYS Assembly)

Republican Assemblyman Steve Katz is due to appear in court later this month after he was arrested for marijuana possession following a traffic stop on the New York State Thruway yesterday morning. According to the New York State Police, who amusingly spell marijuana with an "H," when Mr. Katz was stopped for speeding the trooper smelled the drug in his car and subsequently found him to be in "possession of a small bag of marihuana."

Mr. Katz was not handcuffed and was immediately released after his arrest, but he is due back in court March 28. Mr. Katz represents parts of Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess counties. Last year, he mounted a memorable, unsuccessful campaign for the state senate seat occupied by his former friend Greg Ball.

As of this writing, Mr. Katz has not responded to a request to comment on this story. However, his wife Nicole posted an intriguing update on her Facebook page after the news broke this morning.

"I need a vacation!" she wrote.

Update: Mr. Katz released a statement this afternoon acknowledging the situation.

"In light of the unfortunate incident that occurred, I am compelled to address it briefly. First, I will not let this incident impede my public service and my calls for real mandate relief, a better economic climate and better services for those in need in New York," said Mr. Katz. "This should not overshadow the work I have done over the years for the public and my constituency. I am confident that once the facts are presented that this will quickly be put to rest."

Seattle resident displaying a bag of marijuana shortly after a lew legalizing recreational use of the drug took effect in Washington State last month. (Photo: Getty)

While a growing number of states have been legalizing medical and even recreational use of marijuana, the popular plant remains illegal in New York. However, an upcoming pair of new medical marijuana bills in the Legislature and Governor Andrew Cuomo's proposal to decriminalize possession of small amounts of the drug may signal the Empire State is on its way to looser marijuana regulations. 

One of the initiatives Governor Andrew Cuomo outlined in his State of the State address last week was a policy to decriminalize the possession of 15 grams or less or marijuana in public view. Under current laws, possession of 25 grams or less of marijuana generally does not result in jail time as long as it is not openly displayed, but having even small amounts of the drug can result in an  arrest if it is exposed to the public. This "public view" distinction has drawn the ire of critics who argue that, particularly when combined with the NYPD's controversial stop-and-frisk policy, it results in unneeded arrests when people are arrested for displaying marijuana after complying with police officers' requests to reveal the contents of their pockets during searches. Governor Cuomo echoed this argument when he made his case for decriminalization during the State of the State.

"There is a challenge posed by the 'stop-and-frisk' police policies. Roughly 50,000 arrests in New York City for marijuana possession, more than any other possession. Of those 50,000 arrests, 82 percent are black and Hispanic. Of the 82 percent that are black and Hispanic, 69 percent are under the age of 30 years old. These are young, predominately black and Hispanic males," the governor said. "These arrests stigmatize, they criminalize, they create a permanent record. It's not fair. It's not right. It must end. And it must end now. The problem is the disconnect because marijuana on a person is a violation, marijuana in public view is a misdemeanor. There must be parity. Decriminalize the public view with 15 grams or less so there is fairness and parity in the system and we stop stigmatizing these people, making it harder to find a job, making it harder to get into to school, making it harder to turn their lives around at a very young age."

This isn't the first time Governor Cuomo has made a marijuana decriminalization proposal. Last summer, the governor supported a plan to decriminalize possession of up to 25 grams in the public view, though the measure was supported by the Democratic majority in the Assembly it was blocked by the G.O.P.-controlled Senate.

"Being able to walk around with 10 joints in each ear and it only being a violation, that is wrong," former Republican Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos infamously quipped.

Though the senate Republicans opposed decriminalization of 25 grams or less, Mr. Skelos said he would be open to a reduced version of the proposal that would only apply to those who openly possessed marijuana as a result of a police stop. After the governor scaled back his proposal to 15 grams, Politicker reached out to Mr. Skelos' office to see if this compromise would be sufficient. As of this writing, he has not responded to multiple requests for comment on the issue.

Whether or not the Legislature backs the governor's possession decriminalization push, there are lawmakers pushing to change the state's laws regarding medical use of marijuana. Last year, when Governor Cuomo made his initial decriminalization proposal, the Republican majority ruled over the State Senate. Now, leadership is shared between the G.O.P. and the Independent Democratic Conference. Senator Diane Savino, one of the members of the I.D.C., told Politicker she isn't sure where the Senate Republicans stand on the governor's new, scaled down  decriminalization proposal, but she said she is currently drafting a medical marijuana bill.

"He's going to have to sell that," Ms. Savino said of Governor Cuomo's proposal. "It's not what I'm focused on, I'm focused on medical marijuana."

Ms. Savino believes she has secured enough votes for her medical marijuana bill to pass in the Senate. Democratic Assemblyman Richard Gottfried is drafting similar legislation in the Assembly, which is controlled by his party. His office said he also believes he has enough votes to pass his medical marijuana bill. Along with the push from legislators, medical marijuana advocates have enlisted the lobbying firm Patricia Lynch Associates, which is headed by Pat Lynch, a former top advisor to powerful Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.

Despite the governor's backing of the marijuana decriminalization proposal and the support from lawmakers and top lobbyists, it is unclear whether Governor Cuomo is behind the medical marijuana bills. Ms. Savino said she hopes to be able to get his backing.

"The governor's been cautious in his comments," she explained. "He's not there yet. It's not an issue that he's focused on and I'm sure he has a lot of questions."

Politicker reached out to the governor's office to see whether he supported the proposed medical marijuana legislation. As of this writing, they have not responded to multiple requests for comment.

President Obama visiting his high school in Hawaii in 2008. (Photo: Getty)

This morning, Buzzfeed published excerpts from Dave Maraniss' upcoming biography of Barack Obama that detail the president's usage of marijuana in high school and his years at Occidental College. Mr. Maraniss revealed some of the common names for pot stains in Hawaii, the specific weed slang employed by President Obama and his buddies at Punahou high school and their preferred smoking soundtrack (Blue Oyster Cult, Stevie Wonder and Aerosmith).

Though the excerpts from Mr. Maraniss' book have generated considerable excitement among the chattering classes, the president has admitted to youthful drug use for years now and, in the past, former classmates have described it as a relatively small part of his life.

In his 1995 memoir, Dreams of My Father, President Obama admitted to regularly smoking pot and occasionally doing cocaine in his younger days.

"Junkie. Pothead. That's where I'd been headed: the final, fatal role of the young would-be black man," wrote the president of his drug use.

Mr. Maraniss' book describes how President Obama participated in a high school clique called the "choom gang" with "choom" being Hawaiian slang for smoking pot. It also reveals that the president gave the "choom gang" a shoutout in his yearbook. President Obama's association with the "choom gang" was previously described in a 2007 Los Angeles Times story. That story also described high school friends of the president disputing details of his memoir.

Similarly, the New York Times published a story in early 2008 that involved "more than three dozen interviews" with "friends, classmates and mentors from his high school and Occidental" who all disagreed with the idea drugs played a large role in President Obama's life. Vinai Thummalapally, a former college roommate of President Obama's who is now the U.S. ambassador to Belize, told the Times the president was "not even close to being a party animal" in his college days.

"If someone passed him a joint, he would take a drag. We’d smoke or have one extra beer, but he would not even do as much as other people on campus," said Mr. Thummalapally.

Serge Kovaleski, the Times reporter who wrote the article about the president's drug use concluded President Obama's that either President Obama's friends were trying to protect him or that he played up his drug use in his memoir for dramatic effect. Mr. Kovaleski said his interviews with the president's old friends "could suggest he was so private about his usage that few people were aware of it, that the memories of those who knew him decades ago are fuzzy or rosier out of a desire to protect him, or that he added some writerly touches in his memoir to make the challenges he overcame seem more dramatic."

There's no question the president did indeed indulge in pot smoking in his younger days, the point of revisiting these old stories is to illustrate the fact President Obama's drug use has already been rather thoroughly examined. Since we've all been down this road before and new polls show a growing majority of Americans support legalizing weed, perhaps the president's real pot scandal should be the reversal of his 2008 campaign promise to let states decide whether to allow medical marijuana rather than what he called his drugs back in high school and how much of them he used.

Andrew Stiles of the Washington Free Beacon enjoyed the vocal stylings of MSNBC's Chris Matthews.

Newark Mayor Cory Booker discussed his (lack of a) drug habit and support for medical marijuana.

Matt Drudge debuted a new cowboy hat avatar and speculated about a coming invasion of government drone planes.

Deputy RNC Communications Director Tim Miller had fun watching Democratic operatives dispute a poll that showed Mitt Romney pulling ahead of President Barack Obama with female voters.

Apparently, 1990's sitcom star Joey Lawrence means a great deal to CNBC contributor James Pethokoukis.

Mitt Romney (Photo: Getty)

Mitt Romney was appalled when a reporter asked him about medical marijuana during an interview with a local CBS affiliate in Colorado today. He responded by angrily listing off a list of questions he'd prefer to be asked.

"Aren't there issues? Aren't there issues of significance that youd like to talk about? The economy? The growth of jobs? The need to put people back to work? The challenges of Iran? We've got enormous issues that we face," Mr. Romney said.

The reporter, Shaun Boyd, replied that medical marijuana is "a significant issue" in Colorado, where it was legalized in 2000. Mr. Romney reluctantly agreed to discuss the topic.

"Go ahead," he said.

Mr. Romney went on to explain his view that marijuana is dangerous and should be illegal.

"I think marijuana should not be legal in this country. I believe it's a gateway drug to other drug violations. The use of illegal drugs in this country is leading to terrible consequences in places like Mexico and actually in our own country," said Mr. Romney. "I oppose legalization of marijuana. I oppose legalization of other kinds of drugs, but I can tell you that I have a plan to get this economy going."

After discussing drugs, they went on to discuss economic issues and finished the interview.

"See, I got to jobs," Ms. Boyd said as Mr. Romney began to leave.

"Finally," Mr. Romney said with a laugh. "Finally. ... I'm not running on marriage and marijuana those are state issues."

Watch a video of the interview below. Mr. Romney begins discussing medical marijuana at about 2:20.

"Orange Obama Head" Ecstasy pills. (Photo: PillReports.com)

President Barack Obama is the drug brand of choice for many dealers. Since his election in 2008, the Commander-in-Chief's name and face has been slapped on a wide variety of contraband products including ecstasy pills, LSD tabs, heroin baggies and a popular strain of medical marijuana. 

PillReports.com, a database of Ecstasy pills, lists 26 different types of Obama-branded Ecstasy including orange pills in the shape of the president's head, "Blue Obamas" and a pill emblazoned with likenesses of both the president and Homer Simpson. According to the site, Obama Ecstasy pills have been found in at least 15 states including New York, New Jersey, California and Florida. Unfortunately for political junkies, most of the Obama Ecstasy catalogued in the database were cut with the drug piperazine, a legal pharmaceutical compound used to treat parasites like roundworm and ringworm that is commonly used by drug dealers as a substitute for real Ecstasy. Analyses of Obama ecstasy pills seized by the DEA in 2009 confirmed the pills primarily contained Benzylpiperazine. The Obama branded Ecstasy pills seem to have been quite widespread in 2009 and 2010, they were last reported late last year.

"My Friend Tried These In School. Then, He Started Asking Me What his Name Was And What Class Where In (He Only Took Half) ... Woah!" a PillReports user with the handle unbreakablelove wrote of the Obama pills.

Users of Obama branded pot seem to be much more satisfied than the presidential pill poppers. According to the medical marijuana directory WeedMaps, the "Obama OG" strain of medical marijuana is currently available at 43 dispensaries in California and its popularity is growing.

Along with club drugs and marijuana strains, the Obama brand has also adorned hard drugs and hallucinogens. On the day after President Obama's inauguration in 2009, police in Sullivan County, New York broke up a heroin ring that sold smack in bags marked "OBAMA." That same year, an enterprising LSD maker created Obama acid featuring an Andy Warhol-style version of the president's portrait.

President Obama's Republican rivals don't seem to be nearly as popular with drug dealers. Searching several pot, heroin and ecstasy databases for Santorum, Romney, Gingrich and Paul branded drugs yielded no results. If you, our dear reader, spot any Republican-themed recreational drugs out there in the streets, please let us know!

Now uber-blogger Matt Yglesias is out with a thoughtful post blaming what seemed like an obvious measure for being too harsh.

If someone gets out of jail, it’s basically guaranteed that he’s going to want to make some money. One way to make money is to do legal work. Another way is to commit crimes. So I think we should always be leery of new rules restricting the employability of convicts...

Obviously, it’s tough to be the guy who’s going to bat for convicted murderers, pimps, and rapists. But the reality is that most people convicted of these crimes don’t serve life sentences. They don’t get executed either. So they have to do something. And the nature of the modern American economy is that the majority of job opportunities involve interacting with other human beings. If it was up to me, we’d try to draw these restrictions very narrowly. A school bus driver supervised children and pilots a vehicle. Serious curbs on people with records of criminally inept driving seem clearly warranted. Similarly, you could plausibly worry that pedophiles would be interested in driving a school bus for sub-market wages and want to make sure you’re screening them out. But beyond that, what is the job you want your ex-con murderer to be doing? We can’t ship them to Australia. Penalizing ex-cons by making them unemployable is only going to backlash against us in the form of reduced reintegration and more crime.

Yglesias' point speaks to the political difficulty of reducing tough-on-crime measures even as crime rates drop.  Case-in-point: this week a number of elected officials rallied to repeal a law that makes it a criminal offense to carry out in the open a small amount of marijuana, especially since the Bloomberg administration's stop-and-frisk policy forces people to put their drugs out in the open.

Passage of repeal however seems unlikely in the short-term.