In early February Vice President Kamala Harris said “We changed federal marijuana policy”. 41 days later, and no answers have been given as to what was meant by that statement.
(Photo credit: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images).
In the February 9 video posted on the social media platform X, VP Harris said “We changed federal marijuana policy, because nobody should have to go to jail just for smoking weed”. The video was meant to appeal to young voters, and included several other topics that the Biden / Harris Administration have focused on over the past several years.
Since the video was published, VP Harris has publicly stated that the rescheduling of marijuana should occur “as quickly as possible“, and she has said “we need to legalize marijuana“. However, she has not addressed what she meant in the video when she said “We changed federal marijuana policy”, which is a provable falsehood. The video remains live to this day, viewed over 437,000 times.
Giving credit where credit is due, the Biden / Harris Administration was the first administration to ever sign a standalone piece of marijuana legislation; Biden signed the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act in late 2022. Biden also issued an executive order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct a review of marijuana as a Schedule I drug. That review has led to them recommending the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reschedule marijuana to Schedule III, something the DEA is currently considering.
Despite these efforts, the administration has not “changed federal marijuana policy”. If marijuana is rescheduled while this administration is in office, than that statement could be stated factually by President Biden or Vice President Harris. Until then, it’s a confusing mistruth that no one seems willing to address.
Poling released earlier this year found that if marijuana is rescheduled to Schedule III, 11% of people who have an unfavorable opinion of Biden will switch to having a favorable opinion.
