'It's zero!' Dem Rep. Blumenauer on marijuana deaths November 13, 2014 -- Updated 2108 GMT (0508 HKT) Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer points out there are no deaths from marijuana overdoses "It's not more dangerous than cocaine," he said Pot legalization passed in ballot initiatives in Alaska, Oregon and D.C. Nov. 4 Washington (CNN) -- How many people died of marijuana overdoses last year? "Spoiler alert -- it's zero!" said Oregon Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer, putting his hands over his head in the shape of a zero. The comments were made at an event Thursday with a bipartian group of House members calling for Congress to jump on the bandwagon of marijuana legalization initiatives passed in Oregon, Alaska and D.C. on Election Day. Colorado passed a similar ballot initiative in 2012. Representatives Eleanor Holmes Norton from, D-D.C., Dana Rohrabacher, R- California and Jared Polis, D-Colordao, were also at the event touting the health and economic benefits of legal marijuana. "There were many close elections across America last week, but there was one clear winner: ending our failed prohibition of marijuana, and instead legalizing, regulating, and taxing adult use," Blumenauer said. It's not more dangerous than methamphetamines or cocaine. "Or tequila," Rohrabacher jumped in. Marijuana legalization in the District requires approval from Congress, which is still pending. Norton said that newly elected D.C. Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser is unsure about how Congress will react. "I think she has some concerns about what Congress will do," Norton said. We have to do it in a way so that we don't become the place to come for pot. CNN's Courtney Battle contributed to this report. The Marijuana Debate September 11, 2014 -- Updated 2206 GMT (0606 HKT) Lighting up a freshly packed pipe is just the kind of afternoon delight iReporter robcat20 likes after dealing with a stressful day at work as an insurance agent. March 6, 2014 -- Updated 1340 GMT (2140 HKT) I feel very badly that people have suffered for too long, unable to obtain the legitimate medicine that may have helped them, Sanjay Gupta writes. May 8, 2014 -- Updated 1802 GMT (0202 HKT) Political operatives are pushing pot legalization in several states this year in the hopes of sparking high turnout in this fall's midterm elections, and are looking ahead to 2016 as well. March 7, 2014 -- Updated 1213 GMT (2013 HKT) Aimee Curry recalls sitting on her couch one day, her back contorted, as spasms -- remnants of a car accident that almost killed her in 1992 -- rippled up and down her back. March 7, 2014 -- Updated 0303 GMT (1103 HKT) With 20 U.S. states allowing medical marijuana, and others weighing its medicinal or recreational use, advocates of looser laws on weed appear to have the advantage. January 31, 2014 -- Updated 1219 GMT (2019 HKT) President Barack Obama talks to CNN's Jake Tapper about marijuana legalization in an exclusive interview. September 9, 2014 -- Updated 2126 GMT (0526 HKT) There appears to be a shift in the United States in favor of relaxing marijuana laws, a topic that has dipped in and out of the national conversation for decades. January 7, 2014 -- Updated 0329 GMT (1129 HKT) In an office run from his Massachusetts home, William Downing is part of a burgeoning national pro-pot movement emboldened by the approval of recreational marijuana laws in Colorado and Washington. January 2, 2014 -- Updated 2223 GMT (0623 HKT) Customers waited in long lines for their turn to buy recreational marijuana in Colorado, the first state in the nation to allow retail pot shops. January 22, 2014 -- Updated 1619 GMT (0019 HKT) Looks like the ongoing debate about marijuana legalization in the United States has reached a new high: President Barack Obama's White House. January 23, 2014 -- Updated 0217 GMT (1017 HKT) The White House says Obama's pot policy hasn't changed, despite his assertion the drug is no more dangerous than alcohol. January 15, 2014 -- Updated 1449 GMT (2249 HKT) He's only 3 years old, but Landon Riddle is already the focus of a medical marijuana fight in Colorado. August 9, 2013 -- Updated 0044 GMT (0844 HKT) Over the last year, I have been working on a new documentary called "Weed." The title may sound cavalier, but the content is not.