Will marijuana follow in the footsteps of same-sex marriage?

If history is any guide, it just might.

Libertarian-leaning Republican Rand Paul slipped in the back door and didn't talk about the elephant in the room, but he did listen to 40 donors at a marijuana industry trade show in Denver last month.

Jeb Bush and Ted Cruz said they used pot in their youth, and join Rick Perry in saying the legalization of marijuana should be left up to the states -- even it's a bad idea, according to Perry.

Hillary Rodham Clinton says more research is needed on marijuana's medical value, and it should be available under "appropriate circumstances," and her liberal Democratic rival Sen. Bernie Sanders said he "coughed a lot" the two times he tried pot in the old days.

We've gone from the days when Bill Clinton admitted he smoked pot but "didn't inhale," to Barack Obama's unqualified admission that he smokd a joint on more than one occasion.

The legalization lobbying group, Marijuana Policy Project, plans to donate tens of thousands of dollars to 2016 presidential candidates, but it's hard to tell just how much of an influence the industry will have. Many pot-business owners don't list their businesses on campaign finance disclosure forms because marijuana is still illegal under federal law.

And, more marijuana lobbying money is likely to go to the six-to-10 states that are likely to have some sort of marijuana question on the ballots next year.

What a change from the days when President Clinton signed the national Defense of Marriage Act, and candidate Obama was clear that marriage involved one man and one woman.

Last week the White House was bathed in rainbow colors after the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 states.

Sadly, the majority of our candidates for national office are not reluctant to sell their moral convictions to the highest bidder.

Given our campaign finance laws and the growing influence of the marijuana industry lobby -- pun intended -- how long will it be before candidates hold up a moistened finger to determine which way the wind is blowing the blue-tinged smoke to determine their next direction?