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Marijuana: Where President Candidate Marianne Williamson Stands

Marianne Williamson, a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, is challenging incumbent President Joe Biden in the 2024 election.

Although the lecturer and self-help author is not an elected official, she has made a clear position regarding drug policy. The war on drugs failed and it’s now time to legalize marijuana.

It is not an easy task to run against a president of the same party. However, Williamson has made headlines in both her campaigns and influenced the discourse on issues such as student debt and cannabis policy.

Williamson’s record regarding the issue is not great beyond statements made in interviews and on social media. However, the latest challenge from Biden has brought Williamson back into the spotlight. This warrants a summary of her position on drug policy issues.


This is where Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson stands regarding marijuana:

Legislation and Policy Actions

Williamson, who ran unsuccessfully for Congress and the White House in the past, has never been elected to office. She does not have any legislative experience on drug policy issues.

On the Campaign Trail

Williamson spoke interview to ABC News, days after she announced her candidacy. She said there were “many things the president can do without working with Congress… The president should declassify marijuana now.”

Similar comments were made to reporters at a New Hampshire campaign event.

(Biden directed an administrative review of cannabis scheduling. However, congressional research have maintained it is not within the president’s power to unilaterally de-schedule it.

Previous Quotes and Social Media Posts

Williamson’s comments on drug policy and her social media posts reveal several themes. She believes that the drug war is a failure and that the president should legalize marijuana federally. She also supports criminal justice-centered reform which prioritizes those who have been criminalized.

He also claimed that those who are opposed to student loan debt relief, because they were not afforded it, are basically making the same argument as those who were previously criminalized for using marijuana.

Brittney Griner was incarcerated in a Russian prison for allegedly possessing cannabis oil. She stated that it was a “terrible” situation but that the U.S. still has punitive drug laws. Griner has been released after international negotiations.

Williamson used quotes from President Nixon as a reference to prove that the drug war was largely a cover story to criminalize perceived political enemies, namely minorities or progressives.

Before Biden’s mass cannabis pardons and directive to an administrative scheduling review, in October 2022 Williamson repeatedly argued that the president could unilaterally de-schedule marijuana. This effectively legalized the plant.

The candidate also criticised the White House for penalizing employees who are honest about their previous marijuana use during the application process.

Williamson joined Rick Doblin, a psychedelics reform activist, for a podcast in 2021. There, she discussed research into the therapeutic benefits of entheogenic drugs, including for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. She also talked about how these substances can impact spiritual growth.

Williamson praised congressional efforts to legalize marijuana federally in 2021. She said reform legislation should include “releasing thousands of people from jail who were there for marijuana convictions as well as compensatory steps to help them rebuilding their lives.”

She also celebrated New York’s legalization in 2021 of marijuana, saying it was a cause to reflect on the “terrible suffering & injustices that its criminalization caused to start with.”

New Jersey Governor. After Phil Murphy (D- ) signed legislation to legalize cannabis into law in 2021, Williamson stated that she hoped that the governor would “release the many people in your State who have been charged with marijuana-related offenses.”

Marijuana: My personal experience

Williamson doesn’t seem to have spoken publicly about her marijuana experience. One thing she made clear after the 2020 presidential election was that she had never smoked marijuana and that she “not getting stoned with Senator Amy Klobuchar (D–MN), whom she ran against in that election for the Democratic nomination.

She also posted a video of herself in a sanitary suit for the 4/20 unofficial cannabis holiday last year. This was to show her touring a Nevada-based marijuana cultivation plant.

Williamson stated that marijuana should be legalized after the tour. Tax revenue from cannabis sales would support universal health care, student loan relief, and more.

She stated that “we take better care marijuana plants in this facility then we take care for thousands of children in Nevada, and millions of children in America.”

Marijuana Under A Williamson Presidency

Williamson’s comments about drug policy issues indicate that she would be a proactive supporter for federal marijuana legalization, with an eye toward equity. She may even be open to considering policy changes that affect psychedelics if she pulls off a political upset to win the White House election.


Where President Candidate Nikki Haley stands on Marijuana

Image element courtesy Matt Johnson.

The post Where Presidential Candidate Marianne Williamson Standings on Marijuana was first published by Marijuana Moment.

Kyle Jaeger
Author: Kyle Jaeger

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