In a not-so-subtle nod to the marijuana holiday 4/20, both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris made pro-marijuana social media posts at exactly 4:20pm (ET) on 4/20.
“Sending people to prison just for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit”, said President Biden in a post on the social media platform X. “It’s time that we right these wrongs.”
President Biden followed up these remarks with an image with the quote “No one should be jailed just for using or possessing marijuana.”
The post was made at 4:20pm, on 4/20.
At the same time, Vice President Harris made a post stating “Nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed. We must continue to change our nation’s approach to marijuana while reforming the justice system so it finally lives up to its name.”
VP Harris followed up her remarks with the same image as President Biden, stating “No one should be jailed just for using or possessing marijuana.”
The comments from the president and vice president come just a day after White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that President Biden has been “very, very clear” that he supports decriminalizing marijuana nationwide.
Currently the DEA is conducting a review of marijuana’s scheduling status, prompted by a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recommendation that marijuana be moved to Schedule III. The HHS review was directed by President Biden via a 2022 executive order.
