Vice President Kamala Harris’s stance on cannabis legalization, a key part of her presidential campaign, has sparked a wave of reactions, ranging from enthusiastic support to skepticism and criticism.
Actor Ben Stiller, in a viral interview, expressed excitement about Harris and her commitment to change, stating, “It’s time for change and it seems like it’s happening.” He added that he believes Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, are “incredible candidates” and that the 2024 election will be close but ultimately successful for the Democratic ticket.
The cannabis industry has been particularly vocal in its support of the Harris-Walz ticket. Seth Yakatan of Katan Associates International, an upcoming speaker at Benzinga’s Cannabis Capital Conference, referred to the Harris-Walz ticket as the first to show “genuine and consistent support of legalizing cannabis.” Yakatan highlighted the Biden administration’s plan to reschedule cannabis as the “single largest catalyst event for the cannabis industry” since the advent of state-by-state legalization.
Paul Armentano, deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), lauded Harris’s record on cannabis. In an op-ed for The Pittsburgh-Post Gazette, he stated that Harris has “repeatedly stated that Americans should not be incarcerated for marijuana use,” championed the Biden administration’s efforts to pardon low-level offenders and loosen federal cannabis restrictions, and is the “first major party candidate to have ever called for the plant’s legalization and regulation.”
However, the support isn’t universal. Donald Trump Jr. took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his skepticism, questioning why Harris, as part of the Biden-Harris administration, hadn’t pushed for change in the past four years. His tweet highlights a key criticism levied against Harris – that her actions on cannabis have not matched her rhetoric.
The contrasting viewpoints on Harris’s cannabis stance highlight the complexity of the issue and the different perspectives on what constitutes meaningful change. As the 2024 election approaches, it remains to be seen how the cannabis industry will influence the political landscape and whether Harris’s pro-legalization stance will be a defining factor in her campaign.
