Reporter's Note: President Barack Obama says if Americans have ideas on how to run the country, they should let him know. So I am writing a letter a day, if only to show my dog what it means to respond to a command.

Tom Foreman | Bio

AC360° Correspondent

Dear Mr. President,

Do you remember what I wrote a few days ago, about the extraordinary impact of everything a president does? You may recall I framed it in terms of your potential impact on hat sales. Well, Bob’s-your-uncle, here’s an example coming down the pike!

The pro-legalization of marijuana crowd is dancing in the streets because you dissed their cause during that Online Town Hall Meeting of yours, and now the money is just pouring in. Folks at The National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws say donations have quadrupled, and I’m willing to bet they have some ideas about how to celebrate. Chips anyone?

Anyway, see what I mean? Nothing seems to energize a cause, either for or against something, quite like a President stating his opinion. That said, I noticed that you didn’t exactly say what I’m sure a lot of people think they heard.

The question was something like, “Do you think legalizing marijuana might be a good way to improve the economy and create jobs?” And you laughed, made a crack about the inhaling-vs-not inhaling state of the on-line crowd, and then said, “No, I don’t think that is a good strategy to grow our economy.”

It would be awfully easy for a casual listener (and I should note, a lot of my colleagues in the media reported it this way) to believe that you said you were flat out opposed to legalizing marijuana. And while that would be consistent with what you’ve said in the past, it also steps around some of the nuance in your position. For example, it makes no mention of how you ran for Senate by generally favoring the idea of decriminalizing marijuana, as opposed to legalizing it; then you campaigned for President saying there should still be criminal penalties. I know your campaign insisted that you always said the same thing; that you feel marijuana possession or use should not be legal, but the penalties should also not be so harsh as to be counter-productive…something like that.

But here’s the thing: saying you don’t think legalization “is a good strategy to grow our economy” leaves a lot of gray out there. Are you opposing it as an economic concept? Are you opposing it as a health issue? Are you really opposing it at all, or just saying you don’t think it is the right move at the moment? Meaning maybe it will be good in the future?

Your position on legalizing marijuana is yours to decide and I would not presume to tell you what to do. But I will suggest that statements which can be seen as ambiguous by those interested in the bigger question, or as slippery by those who suspect your pledge of transparency, will not serve you well in the long run.

You’ve promised to be different than past presidents. So either say you are for legalized marijuana, you are against it, or you don’t want to talk about it. Then hold your ground. But make your position sharp, clear, and unmistakable.

For a President, that really would be a change.

Ahh…Monday. Back to the grind, eh? Call if you can. I think my schedule is pretty packed, but I’ll always make time for a chat.

Regards,

Tom

For more of the Foreman Letters, go here.