As a video circulated over the weekend of Vice President Kamala Harris saying marijuana should not be punished, critics ripped into her.
The Daily Wire writes, during an event over the weekend, VP Harris said that “Nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed.”
VP HARRIS: "Nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed." pic.twitter.com/yHDGeUyQ9e
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) October 9, 2022
This comes after, as we previously reported, President Joe Biden pardoned thousands of people last week convicted of federal marijuana possession crimes. The pardons affected more than 6,500 individuals with prior convictions for simple marijuana possession, and thousands more through pardons under DC law.
In response, Harris’ remarks came back to bite her as a result of her record as a prosecutor in California.
San Francisco Republican Party Chairman John Dennis — who is challenging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her seat in Congress — called out Harris in a tweet, saying, “Shameless. As California Attorney General Harris sent people to jail for …smoking weed.”
“The hypocrisy is staggering,” actor Matthew Marsden tweeted.
U.S. Senate Candidate Mark Meuser (R-CA) pointed out: “Clearly, Kamala has forgotten her legacy in California.”
“REMINDER: Kamala Harris has sent at least 1,560 people to prison for marijuana-related offenses,” Steve Guest said.
“Kamala Harris comes out against Kamala Harris,” Dan King added.
During her tenure as San Francisco’s district attorney and California’s attorney general, Kamala Harris oversaw thousands of marijuana-related prosecutions and was a vocal opponent of marijuana legalization. She also declined to support California’s 2016 legalization ballot measure.
Despite her past history on cannabis, she seemed to shift gears rapidly over the last few years, apparently becoming an advocate for cannabis reform.
In 2019, she even expressed support for cannabis legalization and mentioned that she had smoked marijuana in college.
Hear what #KamalaHarris thinks about legalizing marijuana 💬 pic.twitter.com/YGZlCAKUZ0
— The Breakfast Club (@breakfastclubam) February 11, 2019