Kamala Harris said she has long supported legalizing weed. What their California balance sheet shows

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Vice President Kamala Harris said in an interview on the “All the Smoke” podcast released Monday that she has long supported marijuana legalization.

As a federal lawmaker, Harris worked to decriminalize pot. But as district attorney of San Francisco and attorney general of California, the Democratic presidential candidate’s stance was less clear.

“I just feel strongly that people shouldn’t go to prison for smoking weed. And we know historically what that meant and who went to prison,” Harris said during the 47-minute episode of All the Smoke, a podcast hosted by former NBA and Golden State Warrior players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson became.

“Secondly, I think we’re at a point where we need to understand that we need to legalize this behavior and stop criminalizing this behavior,” she said. “Actually, this is not a new position for me. I’ve felt for a long time that we need to legalize it, and I agree.”

The interview, released Monday, marks the first time Harris has publicly reiterated her position on weed since officially becoming the Democratic presidential candidate

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As San Francisco district attorney from 2004 to 2011, Harris oversaw over 1,900 convictions for cannabis violations, the San Jose Mercury News reported in 2019. Still, only a small number of those people ended up in prison.

When she was running for California attorney general, Harris spoke out against a 2010 ballot measure that sought to legalize recreational weed in the state.

She supported the legal use of medical marijuana.

The 2010 ballot measure that would have allowed local governments to regulate and tax recreational consumption failed. It was criticized for being poorly drafted and faced opposition from several California Democrats.

When Harris was running for re-election as California attorney general in 2014, she deflected when asked whether her Republican opponent supported legalizing recreational weed.

In 2016, as California attorney general, Harris took no position on the ballot measure that successfully legalized adult recreational weed in the state. Harris did not comment on the ballot measures at the time because her office was involved in preparing summaries for voters. Harris also ran for a U.S. Senate seat this year.

Harris said at the time that she was generally in favor of legalization, but “there are major concerns about how we would identify and detect impairment for the purposes of legal or illegal driving.” These are real details and when I think about a topic like this, I go I assume that we have thought through the details.”

As a U.S. senator from California and presidential candidate in the 2020 campaign cycle, Harris supported efforts to legalize marijuana and combat nonviolent cannabis-related crimes. Harris served in the Senate from 2017 to 2021.

In 2018, she co-sponsored a bill with Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., to federally legalize weed. The Marijuana Justice Act was never voted on in the Senate.

The Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.

Harris has previously been criticized for changing positions on various issues over time.

Nationwide views on weed have evolved over the past few decades. The legalization of marijuana has broad support, including across party lines.

Currently, the Biden administration is working on a rule to delist pot from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug. Schedule I drugs, including heroin and ecstasy, are the most heavily regulated drugs nationwide. President Joe Biden has also pardoned thousands of people convicted of simple possession and use of marijuana. Harris supported both efforts, including at a White House event on weed reform in March of this year.

Harris has denounced racial disparity in marijuana arrests. An ACLU analysis of arrests from 2010 to 2018 found that black people are 3.6 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than white people, despite similar use rates.

Cannabis advocates have criticized the Biden administration for shying away from federal legalization.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, also has a mixed record on legalizing cannabis. This month he said he supports the Biden administration’s efforts to make marijuana a Schedule III drug, among other measures.

Trump’s campaign pointed to his recent post on the social media platform Truth Social in response to a request for this story: “As President, we will continue to focus on research to advance the medical use of marijuana as a Schedule 3 drug , and work with Congress.” “Pass health care laws, including safe banking for state-chartered businesses, and support the rights of states to enact marijuana laws, like Florida’s, that work so well for their citizens,” the wrote former president this month.