Where does newly minted Democratic VP pick Kamala Harris stand on marijuana? It’s complicated, but indications are the more liberal Harris isn’t likely to push Biden to abandon his go-slow approach on legalization. Harris has a track record on pot that has, as they say, evolved significantly over the course of her political career.
While she prosecuted marijuana cases during her time as attorney general—when pot was still illegal in California—after ending her presidential run Harris supported bills to federally deschedule marijuana and legalize the drug as part of social and criminal justice reform. More recently, she said the war on drugs was a complete failure, noting that had become a “gateway to incarceration,” while also saying that pot was not a gateway drug.
For his part, Biden advocates a reasonable approach to decriminalize marijuana, expunge convictions, allow medical marijuana nationwide, and let states go their own way on recreational—a sensible strategy supported by the Rosenthal Center. Analysts say Harris isn’t likely to convince Biden to go any further, and the official party platform has been formulated along the lines Biden proposes.
And finally, a new study finds more evidence linking vaping and e-cigarette use to COVID-19. Researchers at Stanford University say young people aged 13-24 years who vape were five times more likely to get a positive COVID-19 test result; those who had used both e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes were seven times as like to be diagnosed with the disease. The study didn’t prove that vaping causes COVID-19, but it does involve the repeated touching of hands to the mouth and face, which is associated with the spread of the virus, and exposure to the chemicals and nicotine in vaping devices is linked to lung damage. The researchers said they hope the findings prompt the FDA to effectively regulate vaping during the pandemic—and for a long time after as well.