Forty-one percent (41%) of likely U.S. voters think the United States should legalize and tax marijuana to help solve the nation’s fiscal problems.

However, nearly half (49%) oppose this idea, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

These results show little difference from a survey conducted in February that asked Americans about legalization only. At that time, 40% said marijuana should be legalized, but 46% disagreed.

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Over half of Democrats (52%) support the idea of legalizing and taxing pot, but only 28% of Republicans agree. Most GOP voters (65%) are against the idea, as are 37% of Democrats. Unaffiliated voters are more evenly divided: 41% are in favor of the idea and 47% are opposed to it.

Adults between the ages of 18 and 40 are much more likely to support legalizing and taxing marijuana than those over 40.

The new survey also shows that nearly half of voters (46%) believe marijuana use leads to use of harder drugs. Thirty-seven percent (37%) do not see marijuana as a “gateway” drug.

President Obama's new drug czar has talked recently about focusing more on treatment of drug users rather than stronger law enforcement. Still, 54% of adults believe drug use in the United States is a criminal problem, not a public health issue.

Most voters also do not believe that the legalization of marijuana in the United States will lessen growing drug-related violence in Mexico. Americans are now more concerned about Mexican drug violence spilling into this country than they are about illegal immigration.

While little movement has been made on the federal level, cash-strapped states – most notably California – have taken the idea of legalizing and taxing the drug into consideration. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and state assemblymen are calling for a discussion on the proposal as a means to not only increase tax revenue for the state but to free up large sums of money invested in the legal system as a result of the War on Drugs.

California voters are evenly divided on the issue. A recent survey found that 45% support legalizing and taxing marijuana to help solve the state’s financial problems, while 46% are opposed to the idea.

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