The new reality: 70 percent of Americans favor legal medical marijuana, and half think the drug should just be legal. As Gallup notes, "Support for legalizing marijuana is directly and inversely proportional to age, ranging from 62% approval among those 18 to 29 down to 31% among those 65 and older." Eventually, the drug warriors are going to lose, and the country is going to win.

All of which brings us to Gary Johnson.

Widely expected to emerge from this weekend's Libertarian Party convention as its presidential nominee, the former New Mexico governor has announced that he wants Judge Jim Gray to be his running mate.

Who is Jim Gray?

Among other things, a former prosecutor turned outspoken critic of the War on Drugs. See for yourself:



The kicker: "The best thing I can do for my country is to help us repeal drug prohibition. It's the most patriotic thing that I'm able to do." It's an opportune moment for a libertarian ticket to offer a serious, forceful critique of drug policy, for beyond fortuitous changes in public opinion, there's an incumbent with broken promises and a lackluster record on the issue; and a Republican challenger who is even more of a drug warrior in his avowed positions and such a teetotaller personally that he eschews even caffeine.

Are Johnson and Gray the right team to make this critique? Whatever their shortcomings, they're ideal in this respect: one is an extreme athlete and health nut; the other is a veteran, former prosecutor, and judge who used to be a drug warrior and switched sides based on what he saw in his own courtroom. Can they succeed in injecting the issue into the general election campaign?

Only time will tell.

