Kamala Harris, at a rally in Detroit on October 3, denied answering a question on if she voted for California's Proposition 36, a high profile controversial ballot measure that increases sentences for drug and theft-related crimes. When asked about her opinion on the ballot, Harris said,
"I am not gonna talk about the vote on that because, honestly, it's the Sunday before the election and I don't intend to create an endorsement one way or another."
Kamala Harris once served as San Francisco's district attorney and later California's attorney general. Her history in criminal justice has been under scrutiny, as she noted in a recent speech that she would legalize marijuana if elected President. However, according to reports, Harris oversaw more than 1,900 marijuana convictions in San Francisco, a higher rate than under her predecessor.
After her recent attempt to dodge the question about Proposition 36, which was posted by Greg Price on X, users took to the comment section. One social media user on X lamented:
"She is against the safety for law abiding citizens and fir soft on crime policies"
More social media users shared their sentiments, saying:
"If she can’t talk about her positions on issues then she shouldn’t be president" - another user noted
"Disqualifying as President If you cannot tell the country how you vote on a proposition you cannot be trusted with anything you say" - another user commented
"How can a candidate for the highest office in the country be unable or unwilling to discuss her politics…? 🤨" - commented another user
"this is what weakness looks like" - another user opinionated
Kamala Harris criticized for dodging policy questions
Her response to a question on California's Proposition 36 isn't the first time Kamala Harris dodged a question. On October 14, Marc Benioff, owner of Time Magazine, called out the Democratic candidate for turning down multiple interview requests from the publication.
Benioff noted that the magazine believes in "transparency" and questioned the Vice President for her reason for turning down interviews. In a profile piece published on October 10 on Time, Marc noted that, unlike Harris, her opponent Trump had talked about his policy vision with the publication for 90 minutes across two interviews. Biden spoke at the same length before he stepped down.
As per California Proposition 36, if the ballot passes, people who fail to complete drug treatment will be jailed, and there will be increased punishments for some theft and drug-related crimes. The proposition would also turn misdemeanors into felonies, which means that people convicted of selling or providing illegal drugs to others could be charged with murder if the people they supplied died when under the influence.