Harris says DEA ought to have a look at marijuana reform as rapidly as attainable : 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 Photos

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Kent Nishimura/AFP through Getty Photos

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 Photos

Vice President Harris on Friday urged the Drug Enforcement Administration to work as rapidly as attainable on its evaluate 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 a number of other individuals who have obtained pardons for prior marijuana convictions.

“No person ought to need to go to jail for smoking weed,” Harris mentioned, 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 mentioned he would help legalization for medical use — however depart selections about leisure use as much as the states.

Biden has pardoned folks convicted of straightforward possession below 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 at present categorised as a Schedule I drug — as harmful as heroin — which Harris known as “absurd” and “unfair.” Throughout his marketing campaign, Biden mentioned 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 evaluate that classification. HHS completed its a part of the evaluate final 12 months, however the DEA has not.

“I can not emphasize sufficient that they should get to it as rapidly as attainable, and we have to have a decision primarily based on their findings and their evaluation,” Harris mentioned on Friday.

Biden talked about the difficulty in his State of the Union tackle

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

The problem polls significantly properly with younger voters — a demographic that has grow to be much less enthused about Biden particularly over the best way he has dealt with Israel’s battle in Gaza.

Marijuana reform additionally got here up this week in Milwaukee, when Biden toured his social gathering’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 mentioned.