[UPDATE What dday said, of Obama and Versailles snickering at the marijuana question: "For a real community interaction to work there has to be a certain level of respect, and that was apparently sorely lacking." Of course, some of us never expected respect. So there you are. -- lambert]

Politico doesn't suck any more than the others:

The more than 92,000 people who responded [to Obama's online town hall question] either have Cheech and Chong senses of humor or there is a deep concern in America — undetected by the media — [Well, slap my ass and call me Spanky! That's incredible!] about the decriminalization of marijuana, its possible use for medicinal purposes and its potential as a new source of tax revenue.

Given the opportunity to say what’s really on their minds without going through the filter of the mainstream media, people “buzzed up” a series of questions that seemed to suggest broad interest in legalizing marijuana and taxing it.

Why "seemed"? Look at the numbers:

In this moment of national economic crisis, the top four questions under the heading of “Financial security” concerned marijuana; on the budget, people voted up questions about marijuana to positions 1-4; marijuana was in the first and third positions under “jobs”; people boosted a plug for legalizing marijuana to No. 2 under “health care reform.” And questions about decriminalizing pot occupied spots 1 and 2 under “green jobs and energy.”

Talk about green jobs! And when you think about it, this is one thing the pioneer left (not the finance left, or the union left) could get together with the libertarians on.

That, and ending the empire because it's wrong and we can't afford it.

NOTE Headline riff sincerely flattering Professor DeLong.