Harris says DEA ought to take a look at marijuana reform as rapidly as potential : NPR

Vice President Harris speaks at a roundtable on marijuana reform that included rapper Fats Joe and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

Kent Nishimura/AFP through Getty Pictures

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Kent Nishimura/AFP through Getty Pictures

Vice President Harris speaks at a roundtable on marijuana reform that included rapper Fats Joe and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

Kent Nishimura/AFP through Getty Pictures

Vice President Harris on Friday urged the Drug Enforcement Administration to work as rapidly as potential on its assessment of whether or not to reschedule marijuana as a less-dangerous drug.

Harris made her feedback throughout a roundtable dialog about marijuana reform with rapper Fats Joe, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, and several other individuals who have acquired pardons for prior marijuana convictions.

“No person ought to need to go to jail for smoking weed,” Harris stated, framing the difficulty of marijuana reform as a prison justice subject that disproportionately hurts Black and Latino males.

This was a marketing campaign promise from 2019

Throughout his 2019 marketing campaign, Biden pledged he would decriminalize marijuana and expunge prior convictions for pot use. He stated he would help legalization for medical use — however depart choices about leisure use as much as the states.

Biden has pardoned individuals convicted of straightforward possession beneath federal legislation and D.C. statute — although the overwhelming majority of convictions occur on the state degree. Harris praised Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear for addressing the difficulty in his state, and inspired different states to observe his lead.

Marijuana is presently labeled as a Schedule I drug — as harmful as heroin — which Harris known as “absurd” and “unfair.” Throughout his marketing campaign, Biden stated he would reschedule it.

In 2022, weeks earlier than the midterm elections, Biden introduced that he had requested Well being and Human Providers and the Justice Division to assessment that classification. HHS completed its half of the assessment final yr, however the DEA has not.

“I can’t emphasize sufficient that they should get to it as rapidly as potential, and we have to have a decision based mostly on their findings and their evaluation,” Harris stated on Friday.

Biden talked about the difficulty in his State of the Union deal with

Biden talked about marijuana reform in his State of the Union deal with, saying “Nobody must be jailed for utilizing or possessing marijuana.”

The problem polls notably properly with younger voters — a demographic that has turn out to be much less enthused about Biden particularly over the way in which he has dealt with Israel’s warfare in Gaza.

Marijuana reform additionally got here up this week in Milwaukee, when Biden toured his celebration’s marketing campaign headquarters for Wisconsin. One supporter held up an indication praising Biden for his point out of the difficulty within the State of the Union.

“I am taking good care of that,” Biden stated.