Vice President Kamala Harris confirmed for the first time as a Democratic presidential candidate that she wants to legalize marijuana.
Harris spoke about her latest stance on legalizing marijuana in an interview with the “All the Smoke” podcast, hosted by former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson.
“I just think we’re at a point where we need to understand that we need to legalize it and stop criminalizing this behavior,” Harris said, after reiterating her belief that no one should be in jail for smoking weed.
Harris has taken a number of different positions on marijuana throughout her career.
As District Attorney of San Francisco, Harris continued more than 1,900 marijuana convictions.
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has gone even further when it comes to legalizing marijuana
When she ran for attorney general of California, Harris opposed a 2010 ballot proposal in California that would legalize recreational use of the drug for adults.
While seeking re-election as attorney general in 2014, Harris refused to take a position on legalizing marijuana, ridiculing reporters’ questions on the subject.
Just weeks after she was re-elected, Harris said legalizing marijuana was “inevitable,” even as she said it would be “irresponsible” for her to say so “as California’s top cop.”
‘I have no moral opposition to it or anything like that. Half my family is from Jamaica,” she said, laughing.
When Harris was elected U.S. Senator for California, she officially signed a Senate bill in 2018 to federally legalize marijuana.
Kamala Harris talks about marijuana during an interview with the All the Smoke podcast
Harris continued during her unsuccessful 2020 presidential campaign to promote marijuana legalization.
“Listen, I think it brings a lot of people joy. And we need more joy,” she said in an interview with Charlemagne the God on The Breakfast Club.
She celebrated her use of marijuana in college.
‘I have. And I inhaled. I did inhale,” she said, admitting that she “smoked a joint.”
“It’s been a long time, but yeah,” she added
After being selected as Joe Biden’s running mate, Harris’ position on legalization was more nuanced, as she had largely settled on Biden’s idea of decriminalizing marijuana.
“I think it’s good that he understands that at the very least it shouldn’t be a criminal case,” she told reporters in July 2020 when asked about Biden’s position on the issue.
Harris pushed for decriminalization in early 2024, repeating her slogan at public events and in interviews that “no one should go to jail for smoking weed.”
Harris hosted rapper Fat Joe at the White House in February for an event to talk about the problem of incarcerating marijuana users.
Marijuana activists remain critical of Harris, who ultimately endorsed the idea of legal marijuana but has never apologized for her history of enforcing the law and opposing legalization efforts.
“She has absolutely no moral authority whatsoever to speak on this issue,” marijuana legal reform advocate Steve DeAngelo told DailyMail.com.
Harris now laughs about the issue when asked about it, including when she was informed by l about a new strain of marijuana called ‘Kamala Kush’.evening comedian Jimmy Kimmel.
‘Real? Serious? “I didn’t know that,” she replied, laughing.
Alibi Cannabis in Oregon lists the variety is described as ‘earthy and earthy’ and contains ‘a unique flavor for an active high.’
Kamala Harris seemed surprised when she heard a strain of marijuana had been named after her
“I can’t touch that,” she replied, laughing.
“There was a time when people said, marijuana is a gateway drug,” Harris continued. “This is a failed policy, right?”
“Resources need to be better targeted and will be better focused on dealing with opioid addiction and what we need to do around fentanyl,” she said.
“Getting more resources for mental health and mental health services, right? That’s a smarter way.