Politics

Tulsi Gabbard Touts Decriminalization After Blasting Kamala Harris For Putting ‘1,500 People In Jail For Marijuana Violations’

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Evie Fordham Politics and Health Care Reporter
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Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard touted marijuana decriminalization in a video Friday, weeks after blasting rival Kamala Harris for putting “1,500 people in jail for marijuana violations and then laugh[ing] about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana” during the July primary debates.

“America means freedom. How can we still be incarcerating people for using marijuana? This is counter to everything we stand for. As president, I’ll end the federal prohibition on marijuana, end mass incarceration, and reform our criminal justice system,” the Democratic Hawaii representative said in the video posted on Twitter.

Gabbard’s position isn’t new. She sponsored the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act in 2017, which has not passed despite being re-introduced in the 116th Congress. (RELATED: Tulsi Demands Kamala Harris Apologize To ‘People Who Suffered Under Your Reign As Prosecutor’)

Gabbard painted California Sen. Harris as a hypocrite for her record as a prosecutor versus her stance on marijuana and criminal justice issues today during the Democratic primary debate July 31.

Democratic presidential hopefuls US Senator from California Kamala Harris (L), US entrepreneur Andrew Yang (C) and US Representative for Hawaii's 2nd congressional district Tulsi Gabbard (R) speak during the second round of the second Democratic primary debate of the 2020 presidential campaign season hosted by CNN at the Fox Theatre in Detroit, Michigan on July 31, 2019. (JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)

Democratic presidential hopefuls US Senator from California Kamala Harris (L), US entrepreneur Andrew Yang (C) and US Representative for Hawaii’s 2nd congressional district Tulsi Gabbard (R) speak during the second round of the second Democratic primary debate of the 2020 presidential campaign season hosted by CNN at the Fox Theatre in Detroit, Michigan on July 31, 2019. (JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)

“I want to bring the conversation back to the criminal justice system that is disproportionately, negatively affecting black and brown people today,” Gabbard said. “Senator Harris says she’s proud of her record as a prosecutor and that she’ll be a prosecutor president, but I’m deeply concerned about this record of Senator Harris’.”

Gabbard’s campaign website said the candidate has “been fighting to decriminalize marijuana and end the opioid epidemic throughout her years in Congress.”

Gabbard has a B+ grade from the pro-marijuana legalization group National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

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