© Sarah Rogers/The Daily Beast/ Photos Getty
Dozens of young White House staffers have been suspended, asked to resign, or placed in a remote work program due to past marijuana use, frustrating staffers who were pleased by initial indications from the Biden administration that recreational use of cannabis would not be immediately disqualifying for would-be personnel, according to three people familiar with the situation.
The policy has even affected staffers whose marijuana use was exclusive to one of the 14 states — and the District of Columbia — where cannabis is legal. Sources familiar with the matter also said a number of young staffers were either put on probation or canned because they revealed past marijuana use in an official document they filled out as part of the lengthy background check for a position in the Biden White House.
In some cases, staffers were informally told by transition higher-ups ahead of formally joining the administration that they would likely overlook some past marijuana use,
only to be asked later to resign.
Comment: In light of the above, will Kamala Harris be asked to resign?
From CNN:
Harris says she has smoked pot and supports marijuana legalization
Devan Cole, Updated 1821 GMT (0221 HKT) February 11, 2019
Sen. Kamala Harris, a former California attorney general, said Monday she has smoked marijuana and supports the legalization of the drug.
In the interview, given to the
New York-based radio show "The Breakfast Club," co-host Charlamagne Tha God asks Harris if she has ever smoked.
"I have. And I inhaled -- I did inhale. It was a long time ago. But, yes," the California Democrat replied, invoking former President Bill Clinton's famous "didn't inhale" remark he made during his 1992 presidential run.
Harris, laughing as she realized the attention that her admission might draw, said that she tried pot in college and noted that it was in the form of a joint.
"I just broke news," she said.
The 2020 presidential contender dodged Charlamagne Tha God's question about whether or not she would try it again if it were legalized "all throughout the country," but said that she thinks "that it gives a lot of people joy and we need more joy."
As for marijuana legalization, Harris told Charlamagne Tha God that she supports it. "They say you oppose legalizing weed," he said. "That's not true. And look I joke about it, half joking -- half my family's from Jamaica, are you kidding me," Harris replies, laughing. "No, I do not -- no, no. I have had concerns, the full record, I have had concerns, which I think -- first of all, let me just make this statement very clear, I believe we need to legalize marijuana," she said. "Now, that being said -- and this is not a 'but,' it is an 'and' --
and we need to research, which is one of the reasons we need to legalize it. We need to move it on the schedule so that we can research the impact of weed on a developing brain. You know, that part of the brain that develops judgment, actually begins its growth at age 18 through age 24." "But I am absolutely in favor of legalizing marijuana. We've got to do it," she said later in the interview. "We have incarcerated so many, and particularly young men and young men of color, in a way that we have not for the same level of use (among) other young men."Harris' stance, which aligns herself with a growing movement in the Democratic Party and even among some Republicans, appears to be at odds with where she stood in 2014 when she was running for re-election as California attorney general.
In an interview with KCRA-TV in August 2014, Harris is asked to respond to her opponent's stance on the issue. "Your opponent, Ron Gold, has said that he is for the legislation of marijuana recreationally. Your thoughts on that?" the station asks her. "Um, I -- that he is entitled to his opinion," Harris replied.
Comment: See also:
- Police bombarded with pigs' heads in Catalonia over regional president's removal
- Spain's retired king flees country ahead of investigation into financial corruption
- Catalan rapper arrested for 'insulting monarchy' - 200 artists sign petition 'defending freedom of speech' - Anti-Madrid protest erupts in Barcelona - UPDATE: Riots ongoing
And check out SOTT radio's show from 2017 on the matter of Catalonia's independence, and the rise of independence movements around the world: Behind the Headlines: Kurdistan and Catalonia: The Politics of Self-Determination