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Legalization Supporters Slam Kamala Harris Endorsement From Marijuana Reform Champion Barbara Lee

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Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) is facing backlash from marijuana legalization advocates over her early endorsement of Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) in the 2020 presidential race.

The congresswoman, who last month became the first woman and first person of color to co-chair the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, and who has long been one of Capitol Hill’s most dedicated marijuana reform supporters, said in a statement that Harris has exhibited a “deep passion for justice and opportunity” throughout her career as a prosecutor.

But others have been critical of the senator’s time in the criminal justice system and particularly her role in enforcing harsh drug laws as a prosecutor. That sentiment was on full display after Lee tweeted about how marijuana criminalization has fueled mass incarceration on Saturday—two days after her endorsement of Harris.

“More people are arrested for marijuana than for all other violent crimes combined,” Lee wrote. “Marijuana has long been a driving force for mass incarceration in this country and I’m fighting to end it.”

Hundreds of Twitter users replied that the statement and her endorsement of Harris don’t line up.

“That candidate for 2020 you’re endorsing has been a driving enforcement for exactly this,” one user said in a tweet that generated more than 300 likes.

Harris has tried to rectify her image as a tough-on-crime prosecutor, going so far as to cosponsor wide-ranging legislation to end federal cannabis prohibition. She even admitted to using marijuana during college in a recent interview.

Still, her former offices’ involvement in punitive action against low-level drug offenders during her time as a San Francisco prosecutor and California state attorney general has created a lingering perception among many reform advocates who question her motivations. And for some, the memory of Harris laughing off a reporter’s question about marijuana legalization in 2014 burns bright.

The replies to Lee’s tweet didn’t quite rise to the level of a “ratio” (a Twitter phenomenon in which a post gets more angry replies than retweets or likes), but the overwhelming pushback against her endorsement makes clear that the Democratic presidential candidate will likely continue to face skepticism from marijuana legalization supporters and the broader criminal justice reform crowd as her campaign expands and the presidential race heats up.

Lee’s office did not respond to Marijuana Moment’s request for comment on this story.

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Kyle Jaeger is Marijuana Moment's Sacramento-based managing editor. His work has also appeared in High Times, VICE and attn.

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