Critics ripped into Vice President Kamala Harris over the weekend as video circulated of her claiming that no one should go to jail simply for smoking marijuana.
Harris’ remarks came on the heels of President Joe Biden’s Thursday pronouncement declaring mass pardons for thousands who have past federal convictions on drug charges — and flew in the face of her record as a prosecutor in California.
WATCH:
VP HARRIS: "Nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed." pic.twitter.com/yHDGeUyQ9e
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) October 9, 2022
“And speaking of the system of justice,” Harris began. “We are also changing — y’all might have heard that this week — the federal government’s approach to marijuana.”
As the crowd cheered, Harris continued, “Because the bottom line there is nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed.”
San Francisco Republican Party Chairman John Dennis — who is challenging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her seat in Congress — called out the vice president in a tweet, saying, “Shameless. As California Attorney General Harris sent people to jail for …smoking weed.”
“The hypocrisy is staggering,” actor Matthew Marsden added.
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, special communications advisor to Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) said.
“Kamala Harris comes out against Kamala Harris,” Dan King added.
“Say what you will about Kamala but at least she’s consistent,” @MattsIdeaShop joked.
“Now … people can change. But this still funny,” O’Shea Jackson tweeted.
Now….people can change. But this still funny https://t.co/zALOfoc1v7 pic.twitter.com/Rm1dCr8m9F
— O’Shea Jack(Nichol)son (@OsheaJacksonJr) October 9, 2022
A number of critics pointed to the 2020 presidential campaign — and the moment that many believe Harris’ presidential run really ended — when former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) laid out some of the details of the former prosecutor’s record on the debate stage.
WATCH:
“I want to bring the conversation back to the broken criminal justice system that is disproportionately negatively affecting black and brown people all across this country today,” Gabbard began, adding, “Now, Senator Harris says she’s proud of her record as a prosecutor and she’ll be a prosecutor president, but I’m deeply concerned about this record.”
“There are too many examples to cite,” Gabbard continued. “She put over 1500 people in jail for marijuana violations and then laughed about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana.”