Vice President Kamala Harris expressed her belief that individuals should not be incarcerated for using marijuana, despite her previous involvement in prosecuting numerous cases related to marijuana possession, cultivation, or sale during her tenure as California’s attorney general.
This change in stance is likely influenced by the political dynamics of an arduous reelection campaign, where polling indicates that the Biden-Harris ticket is trailing behind former President Donald Trump in 75 percent of the swing states for the 2024 election. Harris voiced her disapproval of prosecuting individuals who engage in the consumption of cannabis during a roundtable discussion on cannabis reform, alongside musician Fat Joe and Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear (D).
“I believe – I think we all at this table believe – nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed,” she said. “And what we need to do is recognize that far too many people have been sent to jail for simple marijuana possession.”
Harris’s track record of prosecuting individuals in the cannabis sector is intricate, as per Yahoo’s report.
“Harris oversaw roughly 1,956 misdemeanor and felony convictions for “marijuana possession, cultivation, or sale,” according to Reuters. However, defense attorneys and prosecutors in Harris’ office told Mercury News that most of the people convicted during this period did not serve jail time. And convictions for marijuana did go down under Harris’ tenure as district attorney.”
During her time as a United States senator, Harris backed the decriminalization of marijuana. She demonstrated her support by endorsing Sen. Cory Booker’s bill in 2017 to decriminalize the plant on a national scale.
During a presidential debate in 2016, Harris faced criticism from former Democrat Tulsi Gabbard regarding the contradiction. “She put over 1,500 people in jail for marijuana violations,” Gabbard said. “And then laughed about it when she asked if she ever smoked marijuana.”
