Kamala Harris Promises to Legalize Marijuana
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris said on Tuesday, Oct. 15, that she will federally legalize recreational marijuana should she win the November elections. Harris made this promise as part of her campaign’s new “Opportunity Agenda,” which focuses on economic opportunities for Black male voters.
Presidential candidate Kamala Harris shared a poster on the social platform X that said, “Kamala Harris will legalize recreational marijuana.” Echoing earlier statements from the current Vice President as well as President Joe Biden, a caption on the post read as “No one should go to jail for smoking weed.”
“Breaking down unjust barriers that hold Black men and other Americans back and making sure Black Americans have opportunities to succeed as the marketplace takes shape,” the legalization poster added.
Harris also rebuked allegations for her past role as a California prosecutor while speaking on a radio show hosted by Charlamagne Tha God in Detroit, Michigan.
“I was the most progressive prosecutor in California on marijuana cases and would not send people to jail for simple possession of weed,” Harris said.
The Democratic nominee also said she is frustrated by how slow the marijuana rescheduling process is going, and pointed fingers to federal bureaucracy and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “We had to work with the DEA. There’s a certain level of bureaucracy that exists in the federal government that slows things down,” she said.
Harris’s campaign announced that she would work with Congress to ensure that legal farming, distribution and owning cannabis is legal all across the country. One of her main goals is to decriminalize marijuana, because of the disproportionate impact on Black men.
What’s on Kamala Harris’s ‘Opportunity Agenda’?
In general, Harris’s “Opportunity Agenda” numbers measures that should principally benefit Black Americans, as the group who has suffered the most under previous drug laws. The agenda foresees various economic opportunities for Black men and Black entrepreneurs who want to be part of the nascent cannabis industry. Beyond access to jobs in the sector, reforms will offer forgivable loans and improved cryptocurrency regulation.
If elected, Harris will help distribute 1 million loans of up to $20,000, fully forgivable, for Black entrepreneurs and others who have outstanding ideas for business. The loans would be secured through a partnership between the Small Business Administration, community leaders and responsible banks, according to her campaign.
In addition, Harris will back a regulatory framework meant to improve protections for investors in cryptocurrency and other digital assets, which enjoy popularity among Black men.
Days before pushing forward the “Opportunity Agenda,” Harris made a guest appearance in the All the Smoke podcast where she reiterated her position on marijuana legalization.
“I think we have come to a point where we have to understand that we need to legalize it and stop criminalizing this behavior,” Harris said in the podcast. “Actually, this is not a new position for me. I have felt for a long time, we need to legalize it, so that’s where I’m on that.”
The other presidential running candidate, Donald Trump, has also endorsed marijuana reform. However, his party is facing continued criticism on how it has handled cannabis policy in the past.
This is the first time in the history of US presidential elections that both main candidates support the legalization of marijuana at the federal level, with Kamala Harris now coming forward with an unequivocal support on the matter.
More on this topic from Soft Secrets:
- Harris Supports Legalization in Podcast Talk
S
Stephen Andrews
_11zon.png)
