We got back this afternoon and are making our way through a few hundred plus emails. Courtesy of one reader, we see that Bushcroft is seeking permission from the Supreme Court to punish physicians for recommending pot to their sick patients.

The administration would revoke the federal prescription licenses of doctors who tell their patients marijuana would help them, a prerequisite for obtaining the drug under the state's voter-approved medical marijuana law.

Justice Department lawyers this week asked the high court to take up the issue in its next term, which begins in October. The department is appealing a ruling by an appellate court in San Francisco that said the proposed penalties would violate the freedom of speech of both doctors and patients.

If the justices agree to review the case, it would be their first look at medical marijuana since May 2001, when they upheld the federal government's authority to close down a pot dispensary in Oakland and others in the state.

The Justice Department's Supreme Court appeal argues that a physician 's "recommendation" under California law is the equivalent of a prescription for illegal drugs, an action the government can forbid without violating free speech. Department lawyers said the federal policy would not penalize a doctor for merely discussing marijuana with a patient -- as long as the doctor makes it clear that the drug is illegal under federal law, that federal authorities consider it dangerous and medically useless, and that the doctor is not recommending it.

Arthur over at Light of Reason has some harsh words for the Administration on this: