Each election cycle, we grade the most of the presidential candidates primarily based on their monitor file with hashish (right here’s our abstract of 2020’s most important candidates). We kicked off 2024 with our evaluation of incumbent President Joe Biden (Grade C), and adopted up with Republican challenger Ron DeSantis (Grade C+), who recently dropped out of the race and endorsed Donald Trump. Most just lately, we coated Nikki Haley (Grade B-), one other longshot challenger who continues to be round.
At the moment, I wish to do one thing slightly uncommon and take a look at an unbiased candidate, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. RFK Jr. initially bought within the race as a major challenger to President Biden, however dropped out of the Democratic race in October to run as an unbiased.
General Grade: A-
RFK Jr. was a long-shot candidate from the beginning, as evidenced by his leaving the Democratic race in favor of an unbiased race. However in terms of hashish, is extra prepared to entertain large overhauls to federal hashish legal guidelines than Biden or Trump (nearly assured to be the Republican nominee). For that purpose, I’m giving RFK. Jr. an A- on the hashish scale. Right here’s why:
RFK Jr.’s views on drug coverage reform are reportedly formed on his personal prior struggles with habit. Early in his presidential marketing campaign, when he was nonetheless within the Democratic race, RFK Jr. said he would legalize hashish and even psychedelics–a view he has repeatedly affirmed. Extra just lately, as an unbiased candidate, he released ads noting that he wished to decriminalize hashish to deal with habit therapy.
So what would an RFK Jr. hashish plan seem like in motion? We all know that he proposes to (a) legalize hashish and permit for state regulation, (b) impose federal taxes on it, (c) make sure that hashish companies have banking entry, (d) use hashish taxes to fund habit therapy, and (e) in line with his website, “grant amnesty to nonviolent drug offenders.” We don’t have too many specifics on what this might seem like in motion, but it surely’s leagues forward of President Biden or former President Trump, each of whom I’ll come again to under.
Why RFK Jr. solely will get an A-
I selected to provide RFK Jr. an A- as a substitute of a better grade for 2 causes. First, at this stage his plan lacks implementation element. For instance, we don’t know what sort of tax fee he’d impose at a federal degree, and a excessive one would clearly be a burden on the business. So I assumed it greatest to order judgment till we all know extra.
Second, I’m all the time very skeptical of legalization efforts that begin out with the premise {that a} hashish tax will remedy and even put a dent in some urgent social drawback. Look no additional than my house state of California. I agree with RFK Jr. that the states must be free to manage hashish, however imposing a federal tax will simply add to operators’ already heavy plates except states or municipalities are concurrently precluded from hashish taxation. And that’s not going to occur.
So, with this stuff in thoughts, I gave RFK Jr. an A-. It’s nonetheless far forward of the competitors.
How does RFK Jr. examine to the primary get together contenders
The 2024 elections are uncommon within the sense that the 2 most important get together challengers each have had stints within the Oval Workplace. (Sure I do know Nikki Haley continues to be within the race for now, however let’s be actual). Former President Donald Trump didn’t have an ideal monitor file on hashish whereas in workplace. His greatest accomplishment, in my view, was eradicating hemp from the Managed Substances Act. We’ll be popping out with a publish on this sequence on Trump quickly. With out revealing an excessive amount of, he gained’t get even near RFK Jr. on hashish legislation points.
President Biden has been higher, however nowhere close to as transformative as many had hoped. Within the 2020 election cycle, we gave him a D primarily based largely on his congressional monitor file. This time, we gave him a C. The explanation for the advance is that he’s granted a sequence of pardons for smaller federal hashish offenses, and since he kicked off the executive evaluation that might result in hashish being rescheduled. That mentioned, Biden has had the chance to work with Congress to cross some form of hashish reform invoice that may have extra enamel, however simply hasn’t.
RFK Jr. positively has loads of unconventional and controversial views and positions. However in terms of advancing an inexpensive change in federal drug coverage, he’s undoubtedly leagues forward of each Biden and Trump. Whereas one other Kennedy presidency is unlikely on this election season, perhaps one of many huge ticket candidates will observe go well with.