Kamala Harris confirmed that she smoked marijuana in college, and she did inhale. On Monday the senator from California sat down with popular radio program The Breakfast Club to talk pot. Following her pitch to legalize cannabis, she was asked if she has ever used any herself. She admitted to using in college. “I have. And I did inhale,” joked the Democratic frontrunner, alluding to comments made by Fmr President Bill Clinton, who said he tried marijuana but did not inhale. “It was a long time ago, but yes, I just broke news,” Harris said, adding, “I think that it gives a lot of people joy, and we need more joy.” She confirmed that it was a joint that she smoked. What tunes was she listening to? Harris responded in a way that touched her Californian roots saying, “Oh yeah, definitely Snoop. Tupac for sure.” She said that she believes that marijuana needs to be legalized, for many reasons, with research on the substance being a priority. During her pitch on marijuana she remarked, “But I am absolutely in favor of legalizing marijuana. We’ve got to do it. We have incarcerated so many particularly young men and young men of color in a way that we have not for the same level of use of other young men,” said Harris. “And we’ve got to deal with that in addition to dealing with the fact that not all drugs are the same, and when we’re talking about marijuana.” You can watch the interview for yourself below:<doc-sep>One of the Democratic presidential candidates for 2020, Senator Kamala Harris, on Monday said that she used to smoke marijuana while listening to rappers Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg in college. However, things did not quite add up as the California senator graduated college in 1986, years before the rap artists released their breakthrough albums. Harris made the statement during a radio interview on 'The Breakfast Club', where host Charlamagne tha God egged her to reveal more details about what music she listened to in college. "What was you listening to when you was high? What was on? What song was on?" he asked during the interview. To which she replied with: "Definitely Snoop, Tupac for sure." No, Kamala Harris didn’t tell @breakfastclubam she listened to Snoop Dogg and Tupac before they came out. She acknowledged she smoked weed in college. She never said that was the only time she ever smoked. Later when asked if she ever listened to Snoop while high, she said yes. pic.twitter.com/UNCbbl5fC6 — Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) February 13, 2019 Tupac Shakur's debut album, '2Pacalypse Now', was released in 1991, while Snoop Dogg's 'Doggystyle' debut came out in 1993, although he recorded with Dr. Dre in 1992. Presenter Snoop Dogg speaks about 2017 Inductee Tupac Shakur onstage at the 32nd Annual Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony at Barclays Center on April 7, 2017 in New York City. Debuting on HBO Saturday, April 29, 2017 at 8:00 pm ET/PT (Getty Images) The California senator, who was born in Oakland, graduated from Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1986, and later attended law school in California at the Hastings College of Law, earning admission to the California bar in 1990. However, Harris wasn't there just to regale the host with her "got high" escapades, but said the objective was to legalize marijuana as the law against it leads to many young men, particularly young men of color, being arrested. She also said that she inhaled. "I have. And I inhaled. I did inhale. It was a long time ago, but yes. I just broke news!" the senator said. "You know, I joke about it – half joke – but half my family's from Jamaica! Are you kidding me?" "We have incarcerated so many, particularly young men – and young men of color – in a way that we have not for the same level of use, other young men. And we've got to deal with that," she said. U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) (C) speaks during a news conference on immigration in front of the U.S. Capitol May 23, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Getty Images) Harris has always advocated the use of recreational marijuana. Recreational marijuana use has been legalized in at least 10 states in the country and the District of Columbia, while thirty-three states have legalized medical marijuana. However, cannabis use continues to be illegal under federal law. Multiple presidential candidates before Harris have claimed to have smoked marijuana when they were young, including former President Bill Clinton. When Clinton was a presidential candidate nearly 29 years ago, he had admitted that he had smoked weed, however, he insisted he "didn't inhale," according to the Daily Mail. Libertarian Party's 2016 presidential nominee Gary Johnson, a former New Mexico governor, had also admitted to being a regular marijuana smoker. He, however, said that he stopped using the drug during the presidential campaign: "I want to be completely on top of my game, all cylinders." Former President Barack Obama speaks at a rally to support Michigan democratic candidates at Detroit Cass Tech High School on October 26, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. (Getty Images) Former President Barack Obama has also been famously open about drug use. The Democrat, in his memoir, once recalled his teenage friendships in a group he called 'The Choom Gang.' "I inhaled frequently. That was the point," Obama told NBC News in 2006. President Donald Trump, however, has said that he has never taken an illegal drug or even drunk alcohol, except for communion wine.<doc-sep>It began as a lighthearted moment. Senator Kamala Harris, the California Democrat and former prosecutor who announced her presidential candidacy last month, revealed on a popular radio show this week that she had smoked marijuana during her college years at Howard University in Washington. But after a viral tweet ignited backlash from marijuana activists and conservatives, Ms. Harris faces accusations that she fabricated parts of her story. In the midst of answering simultaneous questions about what music she listens to, she appeared to some to say she listened to rap artists like Tupac and Snoop Dogg as she smoked in college, though neither released an album until after she graduated. Conservative news outlets feasted on what they portrayed as an embarrassing gaffe, with the popular morning show “Fox & Friends” even dedicating a segment to it Wednesday morning. Less partisan media outlets also publicized the supposed controversy, with some alleging that it was further proof Ms. Harris, who is likely the most viable black woman ever to run for president, was playing up parts of her identity in order to impress black voters.<doc-sep>
There was a time not too long ago in which political candidates would not admit to past use of marijuana and would certainly not acknowledge having listened to rap music in their younger days. Kamala Harris, the Senator from California who is running for president in 2020, did both in an interview this week, although the timeline of the music she enjoyed at the time has been questioned. Harris appeared on The Breakfast Club radio show Monday and spoke at length about the subject of drug policy, per the New York Post. Harris was known for being tough on drug offenders when she was a prosecutor, although she is now in favor of marijuana legalization. "We need more joy," Harris said about her position on marijuana. When asked if she had ever smoked marijuana herself, Harris replied "yes, and I did inhale," in reference to then-candidate Bill Clinton's much-mocked proclamation during the 1992 presidential campaign that he had used the drug as a college student but had not inhaled. "It was a long time ago," Harris said, laughingly adding that "I just broke news." But another part of the interview raised questions. The hosts asked her what music she was listening to at the time she was partaking in marijuana. "Definitely Snoop, Tupac, for sure." Sen. Kamala Harris says she has smoked pot and supports marijuana legalization https://t.co/hth7ggYRmb pic.twitter.com/75gm0naRpj — CNN (@CNN) February 11, 2019 However, as pointed out by Twitter user @JoshIeecs, Harris couldn't have listened to either of those rappers in college for a good reason. Harris graduated from Howard University in 1986. Neither Snoop Dogg nor Tupac was yet an active artist until many years after that. "Tupac's first album came out in 1991," the tweet said. "Snoop's first album came out in 1993." It's possible that Harris was misremembering which music she enjoyed in college, or perhaps that she used marijuana while listening to those rappers long after college, as Harris never categorically states in the interview that she never used marijuana later than her undergraduate days. There's also a chance that Harris didn't actually listen to rap back then and, when asked about it on a hip-hop-associated radio show, decided to just name the first two vintage rappers that came to mind. Harris went on to state that she currently enjoys the music of Cardi B, especially the song "Be Careful." It's certainly not the worst gaffe ever committed by a candidate, and once again, it would have been impossible to imagine as recently as 10 or 15 years ago for a presidential contender to be drawn into a controversy over which rap music they favored while getting high in college in the 1980s.