Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday called on the federal government to move “as quickly as possible” to change the way it officially classifies marijuana, saying that “nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed.”

“I cannot emphasize enough that they need to get to it as quickly as possible,” Harris said. “We need to have a resolution based on their findings and their assessment. This issue is stark when one considers the fact that on the schedule currently, marijuana is considered as dangerous as heroin ― as dangerous as heroin ― and more dangerous than fentanyl, which is absurd, not to mention patently unfair.”

Marijuana is currently listed as a Schedule 1 drug by the Drug Enforcement Administration. That classification designates it one of the most dangerous drugs possible, with no medicinal uses. Other substances in the same category include heroin, ecstasy and LSD. Marijuana advocates have been pushing for years for the federal government to either reschedule marijuana to a different category or deschedule it entirely.

    • Dagwood222@lemm.ee
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      8 months ago

      Donald Trump came into office and had both Houses.

      Never even mentioned weed, unless it was to talk about how users should be executed.

      But I’m sure he’ll change next time

            • Dagwood222@lemm.ee
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              8 months ago

              What makes you think there’s a giant majority of the country begging for a hard Left party?

              Every poll I’ve seen puts ‘Socialists’ at about 6% of the population.

              Do you have better data?

              • Garbanzo@lemmy.world
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                8 months ago

                Poll on the issues and policies instead of the labels and you’ll get wildly different results

                • Dagwood222@lemm.ee
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                  8 months ago

                  I agree 100% That’s one of my biggest beefs with my fellow Progressives. I once got into it with someone. I said the only thing we should be saying is “Tax the rich.” He spent hours explaining why we had to educate the workers into Marxism before we could do anything meaningful.

                  It’s too bad we don’t vote on issues and polices; we vote on politicians and the Right knows how to find pretty faces who know how to sound good.

              • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world
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                8 months ago

                What makes you think there’s a giant majority of the country begging for a hard Left party?

                Well, about this particular issue, 70% of the US wants what neither conservative party is willing to ever do.

                • Dagwood222@lemm.ee
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                  8 months ago

                  The title of the article is that the current, Democratic Vice President is calling for it to be rescheduled.

                  Biden pardoned all pot smokers back in 2022.

                  You tried to move the goal posts and failed.

                  And apparently you agree that less than 10% of the population is ‘Socialist.’

                  • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world
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                    8 months ago

                    The title of the article is that the current, Democratic Vice President is calling for it to be rescheduled.

                    Fruitless words are not accomplishments. If we accept the former in lieu of the latter, we will not get the latter. I’m sure that’s fine with you.

                    Biden pardoned all pot smokers back in 2022.

                    No, he pardoned the tiny fraction of pot smokers who are convicted in federal court. I’m not faulting him for not pardoning the others, as he cannot pardon state convictions.

                    And apparently you agree that less than 10% of the population is ‘Socialist.’

                    I don’t care what your made up statistics are, you were trying to divert from the subject at hand.

    • thirteene@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      Or they felt confident that they would get a free win, and delayed it until the election news cycle. It’s likely a bit of both.