GOP rep: I’ve used medical marijuana in office

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) says he has used medical marijuana during his tenure in Congress.

Rohrabacher on Wednesday said he began treating his arthritis two weeks ago with a topical, wax-based marijuana product, according to The Washington Post.

{mosads}“I haven’t been able to go surfing for a year-and-a-half, and I’ve been in severe pain because I spent all my time doing that, which I can barely do now,” he said while demonstrating a paddling motion, according to Cannabis Radio.

“I went to one of those hemp fests in San Bernardino,” Rohrabacher added, describing where he found the topical treatment.

“And you know what? I tried it about two weeks ago, and it’s the first time … in a year-and-a-half that I’ve had a decent night’s sleep, because the arthritis pain was gone.”

Rohrabacher confirmed he knowingly broke the law.

“Now, don’t tell anybody I broke the law,” he said. “They’ll bust down my door and, you know, and take whatever’s inside and it for evidence against me.”

National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws Executive Director Allen St. Pierre touted the significance of Rohrabacher’s public admission.

“This is definitely the first legislator in Congress in at least 30-some-odd years who has acknowledged to using marijuana illegally,” he said.

Medical marijuana is legal in Rohrabacher’s home state of California.

Rohrabacher previously crafted a provision in federal law preventing the Justice Department from interfering with state-level medical marijuana operations.

Marijuana remains illegal for all uses at the federal level. The Drug Enforcement Agency considers marijuana to have “no currently accepted medical use” and “a high potential for abuse.”