Katie Couric and John Hickenlooper at the Aspen Ideas Festival. (Aspen Ideas Festival)

Watch: Hickenlooper, Couric talk marijuana in Aspen

When Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper and veteran broadcaster Katie Couric got together at the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado to have a conversation titled “The Dope on Pot” on Tuesday, July 1, what exactly did they talk about?


Six Months In:
A special report from The Cannabist

$202 million in pot sales?! 10 Colorado facts from six months into 2014

Is that really a thing?: 10 strange but true stories from 6 months into 2014

Listen to the NPR audio: What has Colo. learned from 6 months of legal pot sales?

Big changes ahead: Colorado’s recreational marijuana industry starts a transformation Tuesday that could add hundreds of new pot businesses to the state and reconfigure the market’s architecture

100 questions: Your go-to source for answers and info about legal marijuana in Colorado


Of course they discussed Colorado’s groundbreaking marijuana “experiment,” as Hickenlooper has called it. The also talked about Colorado’s tax revenue, youth prevention measures, marijuana edibles and keeping pot from leaving Colorado, among other topics at the Aspen Ideas Festival, presented by the Aspen Institute and The Atlantic.

“What would you say to the governor of Washington (Gov. Jay Inslee), in terms of how to handle this, and things that maybe you wish you had done differently?” Couric asked.

“Things like the edibles, and making sure you limit the dosage per edible,” Hickenlooper said. “They’re going to learn from our mistakes every way they can.

“As we try to figure some solution to this cash/banking conundrum, they’re not only watching us but also trying to help us with that. So, we’re kind of partners, right? Our staffs talk on a regular basis and are trying to figure out, how do we navigate this together?”

There was also this inevitable question, which Couric tossed out in the middle of the discussion: “Since it’s became legal in the state of Colorado, have you been partaking?”

Hickenlooper paused, took a sip of water, waited a beat, and then shook his head. “No,” he said with a grin.



Medical views: Why Drs. Gupta, Oz and Besser changed their stance on marijuana

Stay entertained: Watch videos and read up on high-profile connections to cannabis

The new cannabis lexicon: Do you know the difference between shatter and wax? Fatties and pinners? We’ve got all the lingo, from A-Z.