Fox & Friends host and resident white guy Brian Kilmeade said Wednesday that he believes it is an insult that Vice President Kamala Harris proposed to legalize recreational marijuana as part of a policy slate aimed at Black male voters.
When the issue came up on the popular Fox News morning chat show, Kilmeade claimed “the generalization is that the Black community smokes pot.”
“I treat it as an insult,” he added. Co-host Lawrence Jones, who is Black, noted that Black Americans are “not even the number one consumer of weed.”
However, the Harris campaign did not make any such claims in its announcement Monday, arguing for legalization because Black men have been over-policed for marijuana use and denied access to the job market in jurisdictions where the drug has become legal or decriminalized.
FBI data shows Black Americans, who make up 13.7 percent of the U.S. population, accounted for 29 percent of drug arrests last year. Black Americans are also convicted at higher rates and given longer sentences in criminal cases, years of research shows.
Last week, Kilmeade wandered into much stranger territory when discussing Black voters.
During the show’s Oct. 11 broadcast, he started reading aloud a joke by comedian Eddie Griffin which he said features a “humorous argument” that former president Donald Trump “has certain credentials the Black community likes.”
“‘He’s got three baby mamas, 43 felony cases and counting,’” said Kilmeade, awkwardly quoting Griffin. “‘He’s selling high top tennis shoes like Michael Jordan. And he got shot like Tupac.’ He goes, ‘I’m voting for him.’ He goes, ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if he dropped an album next.’”
Jones quickly interjected to note Griffin was “clearly making a joke,” adding “I don’t think the community cares very much about that.”
Mercifully, Jones pivoted from Kilmeade’s cringe recitation to make a persuasive and thoughtful critique of Democratic rhetoric about crime, suggesting some members of over-policed communities could take umbrage to the party’s gloating about Trump’s felony conviction.
“The Democrats have to be very careful: if you notice there was a huge surge of saying ‘felon, felon, felon,’” he said. “I thought the Democratic Party was for felons being able to vote and for a second chance.”