{"id":4592,"date":"2022-03-03T18:30:00","date_gmt":"2022-03-03T18:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/wp-home\/?p=195812"},"modified":"2022-03-03T18:30:00","modified_gmt":"2022-03-03T18:30:00","slug":"senate-hopeful-gary-chambers-vows-to-hold-president-biden-to-his-federal-legalization-promise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/?p=4592","title":{"rendered":"Senate hopeful Gary Chambers vows to hold President Biden to his federal legalization promise"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>  <title>Gary Chambers vows to hold President Biden to legalization promises<\/title>     <!-- This is Index Exchange, a script\/\/3rd-party integration that interjects GAM. It needs to be 'ahead' of GTM in the DOM, which comes from Cephalopod. GTM loads GAM. 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You&#8217;re not old enough to use Leafly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"hidden age-gate__loading\">Redirecting you to<span class=\"redirect-domain\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"text-xs mt-auto\">By accessing this site, you accept<br \/>\nthe <a class=\"py-xl\" data-testid=\"tou-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/info\/terms-of-use\">Terms of Use<\/a><br \/>\nand <a class=\"py-xl\" data-testid=\"pp-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/info\/privacy-policy\">Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"container my-xl\">\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"col md:col-9\" id=\"article-content\">\n<h3><strong>The Louisiana native wants to push cannabis to the forefront of America\u2019s political landscape<\/strong><\/h3>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/news\/politics\/gary-chambers-blunt-campaign-ad-hits-different\">In January<\/a>, US Senate hopeful Gary Chambers Jr. caught the eyes and ears of the nation by boldly smoking a blunt in his debut campaign commercial. He added to the flames weeks later by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?time_continue=60&amp;v=X6iSRU9486I&amp;feature=emb_title\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">burning a Confederate flag<\/a> in his next ad. But don\u2019t think that Chambers Jr. platform is all about shock value. The substance behind his burning ideas is on full display whenever he speaks. <\/p>\n<p>Recently, Chambers Jr. stopped in Atlanta on a fundraising trip and caught up with Leafly to discuss his run for US Senate, his viral campaign ad, and his intention to push for federal legalization if elected.<\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/news\/politics\/gary-chambers-blunt-campaign-ad-hits-different\" class=\"wp-block-leafly-blocks-leafly-single-inline-block leafly-inline-related-story\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"border border-deep-green-alt border-l-0 border-r-0 my-xl p-md font-bold\">\n<p>Related<\/p>\n<p>This is why Senate candidate Gary Chambers lit a blunt and went viral<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a> <\/p>\n<p>Chambers Jr. already has a proven history of advocacy at local Council and School Board meetings. He brought attention to the deaths of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theadvocate.com\/baton_rouge\/news\/alton_sterling\/article_eecefbce-49e6-11e6-9622-870200d6e27a.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Alton Sterling<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theadvocate.com\/baton_rouge\/news\/crime_police\/article_074139bd-8bdb-5027-918f-78d49b3d3b07.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Lamar Johnson<\/a> in police custody. And he sees the prosperity legal cannabis could provide for local economies across the country if leveraged correctly.<\/p>\n<p>The stakes are high. But with his blunt-burning debut, Chambers has already proven he\u2019s not afraid of heights. Keep reading and get to know the Senate hopeful who\u2019s ready to take America\u2019s complex weed problems all the way to Washington.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<h2 id=\"h-on-the-inspiration-for-his-blunt-campaign-ad\">On the inspiration for his blunt campaign ad <\/h2>\n<p> [embedded content] <\/p>\n<p>We chose to smoke a blunt in our first ad for this US Senate race because in the South, people are still going to jail for use of cannabis. While in California, Illinois, now even Virginia, cannabis is legal. But in Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North\/South Carolina, there are forms of legalization, but not full federal legalization. <\/p>\n<h2>On the human cost of criminalizing cannabis<\/h2>\n<p>Black and White people use cannabis and the same measures. But Black folks are penalized at a higher level for that.<\/p>\n<p>I won\u2019t say I wanted to be in this work or that I sought out to do it. There was a problem in my community, I had a platform to address it. I use that platform to speak to it as much as what we\u2019re doing in this US Senate race.<\/p>\n<p>We need people at the highest levels of this government talking about that issue. And we need to be able to study and do the research so that we can have the medicinal benefits that come from this plant.<\/p>\n<h2>On holding President Biden to his campaign promise to legalize cannabis<\/h2>\n<p>The President said in the time that he was campaigning that he would decriminalize cannabis on a federal level. I think we as a people, the Democratic Party, need to expect the President to be true to what he said as candidate Biden and (as) President Biden. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote is-style-solid-color\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>As a US Senator that is something that I would be pushing the President to do immediately. <\/p>\n<p><cite>US Senate candidate Gary Chambers Jr. on federal legalization and expungements<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p>That\u2019s the bare minimum. That\u2019s the floor of what we should be doing. We should really be at every level expunging records and de-scheduling it. And making sure there is some level of equity about the resources that go around. Because eventually, this is gonna just be agriculture. <\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/learn\/legalization\/expungement\" class=\"wp-block-leafly-blocks-leafly-single-inline-block leafly-inline-related-story\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"border border-deep-green-alt border-l-0 border-r-0 my-xl p-md font-bold\">\n<p>Related<\/p>\n<p>Expungement: What does it mean and how do I get one?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a> <\/p>\n<p>We (will) need your farm (points to a farmer in the barbershop) to get that same subsidy that the other farms get. That\u2019s what it\u2019s really gonna come down to. <\/p>\n<p>The minute that this stuff is legal or de-scheduled all across the country, the people with the big pockets and the big resources are gonna be the drivers of a new agricultural industry in America.<\/p>\n<p> [embedded content] <\/p>\n<h2>On why he\u2019s needed in the Senate<\/h2>\n<p>There are problems in this country all over this nation. And a US senator can have a whole lot of power. You look at Krysten Sinema senator from Arizona and Sen. Joe Manchin from West Virginia. They have been on TV repeatedly throughout this year about holding up the President\u2019s agenda.<\/p>\n<p>That lets you know that if there are more of us there in those positions of power, the issues that we\u2019re talking about can be mainstream. And we can move the needle on them.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<p><em>If you\u2019re invested in the struggle to legalize cannabis federally, keep track of Chambers Jr.s\u2019 progress in this year\u2019s Senate race.<\/em> <em>Local pundits currently give Chambers Jr. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nola.com\/news\/politics\/article_1b1182c2-7914-11eb-aa27-17e743636739.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">long odds<\/a> of winning. But some acknowledge that an underdog victory like Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez is on the table if he continues resonate with voters.<\/em><\/p>\n<div id=\"author-box\" class=\"p-lg my-xxl bg-white rounded border border-light-grey elevation-low\">\n<div class=\"mb-lg\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/senate-hopeful-gary-chambers-vows-to-hold-president-biden-to-his-federal-legalization-promise.jpg\" alt=\"Mehka King's Bio Image\" class=\"lazyload inline-block mr-md rounded-full border border-light-grey\"> <\/p>\n<p>Mehka King<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"text-sm\">Mehka King has spent his professional career as a journalist and content creator. Since 2017, he has interviewed cannabis activists, politicians, business leaders, athletes, and entertainers about their views on cannabis for CashColorCannabis.com network.<\/p>\n<p> <a class=\"text-sm font-bold underline text-green\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/news\/author\/mehka-king\">View Mehka King&#8217;s articles<\/a> <\/div>\n<div class=\"leafly-sailthru-signup p-lg my-xl bg-white rounded elevation-low border border-light-grey\">\n<p class=\"text-xs pt-lg\">By submitting this form, you will be subscribed to news and promotional emails from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\">Leafly<\/a> and you agree to Leafly&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/company\/tos\">Terms of Service<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/company\/privacy-policy\">Privacy Policy<\/a>. You can unsubscribe from Leafly email messages anytime.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p> <!-- Chartbeat --> <!-- End Chartbeat -->  <!--\nPerformance optimized by W3 Total Cache. 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The Louisiana native wants to push cannabis to the forefront of America\u2019s political landscape In January, US Senate hopeful Gary Chambers Jr. caught the eyes and ears of the nation by boldly smoking a blunt in his debut&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4593,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4592","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-marijuana_information"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/senate-hopeful-gary-chambers-vows-to-hold-president-biden-to-his-federal-legalization-promise.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4592"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4592\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4593"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}