Willie Nelson performed at the A Salute to the Troops concert at the White House Thursday, which aired tonight on PBS. Prior to the show, he told CNN that Pres. Obama "may be happy" that two more states and Washington, DC just legalized marijuana.
Brooke Baldwin: How long will it to take for marijuana to be legal in half the U.S.?
Nelson: I don't think it will be that long now. Once people have realized the bottom line, how much money there is in it - Colorado and some of those other states have shown already that it's a very lucrative business. I think it won't take long before the rest of the states come around. As they say it's about time.
Baldwin: Do you think it will help people in DC get along?
Nelson: Well, I really think stress is the cause of a lot of our problems. I really believe the best medicine for stress is pot. Yeah, I think it would make us get along better all over the world.
Baldwin: What did you do on the roof of the White House (in 1980)?
Nelson: Well, Brooke, that short-term memory thing. I'm not sure I can remember.
Baldwin: Is this something you will address with the president as you enter the White House this evening?
Nelson: I probably won't say anything to the president about it. I think I realize how he feels about it and I’ve read some of his books and things about when he was a kid, how he may have delved into that matter a little bit. I’m sure he’s very understanding of what is going on and he may be happy to see it happening.
In addition to Nelson, Mary J. Blige, John Fogerty, Common, Daughtry and Romeo Santos performed at the concert. The show ended with Nelson leading everyione in a version of his classic, "On the Road Again."
