From Eric Dondero:

John Frary is a retired history professor in Maine. He is a traditionalist Republican. He ran unsuccessfully for congress as the GOP nominee in 2008 opposing incumbent Rep. Michael Michaud. During his campaign while he was on a local radio show, a caller called in and asked his position of legalizing marijuana. Frary stunned the caller and listeners by answering he favored legalization. He cited National Review and quoted free market economist Milton Friedman.

From his editorial in the Portland Daily Sun "Legalize Marijuana?" July 19:

A lot of people assumed that I was taking a libertarian position about the war on drugs, that drug consumption and addiction are entirely private matters. Actually, I never felt the need to get into the philosophical question. A conservative can conclude that the human race really doesn’t need yet another means of evading or numbing reality and blotting out reality. But there are no good grounds for persisting in failure.

A prolonged and persistent effort had been made. Civil rights have been strained, jails and penitentiaries stuffed full, hundreds of billions of dollars spent, immense police resources committed. No victory in sight.

It falls to those who want to keep this war going to explain either how much they are willing to spend to maintain the present stalemate and for how long, or how they think victory can be achieved at last despite the iron laws of supply and demand that Prof. [Milton] Friedman explained.

Note - Maine Republican legislators have recently introduced medical marijuana legislation, and Republican Gov. Paul LePage has indicated he would sign such legislation.