She was afraid to stir the progressive pot.
Joe Rogan claims the Harris-Waltz campaign drew a red line on discussing “legalizing marijuana” for an interview that never happened, but aides say the sit-in was progressive He said he was confused because he feared a backlash.
“I think they had requests for things she didn't want to talk about. She didn't want to talk about marijuana legalization, which I thought was funny,” the popular podcaster said Tuesday. This was revealed on an episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience.''
Mr. Logan, 57, said the Harris-Waltz campaign approached Mr. Logan's management team for an interview following reports that President-elect Donald Trump would appear on a highly rated podcast.
But in the end, scheduling didn't work out, said Ian Sams, a spokesman for the Harris-Waltz campaign.
During negotiations with Rogan, some on Harris' team became wary that Rogan's high-profile podcast appearance could spark a progressive backlash.
“There was some pushback from some of our progressive staff members who didn't seem to want her on board and how the backlash would happen,” said Douglas Emhoff, an advisor to Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff. Jennifer Palmieri told the paper. financial times.
Rogan's guest on Tuesday's episode, comedian Adrian Iapalucci, pondered why the campaign considers the debate over legalizing marijuana to be out of bounds.
“Because of her prosecution history,” Rogan mused about Vice President Kamala Harris, who also served as California's attorney general and San Francisco district attorney. “She put a lot of people in jail on marijuana charges.”
Last month, Harris' team rolled out a series of policies aimed at winning over black male voters, including legalizing marijuana.
She has come under fire from the left flank for her history with marijuana prosecutions, including during the 2020 Democratic primary.
Several prominent Democrats have pointed to Harris' refusal to consult with Logan as a factor in her defeat on November 5th.
President Trump's wide-ranging, nearly three-hour interview with Logan has garnered nearly 50 million views on YouTube. Rogan previously revealed that their mutual friend, UFC CEO Dana White, pushed for an interview between the podcast king and Trump, 78.
Logan said the Harris-Waltz camp has made other demands, including limiting the debate to about an hour, much shorter than the usual three-plus hours, and that Veep not have to make the trek. It is said that the agreement included requests for consideration to ensure that the At the studio in Austin, Texas.
He said the latter would be a deal breaker.
“I don't know how many conversations they had with my family, but they had multiple conversations, different dates, different times, this was different, that was different, and we knew she was in Texas. I said 'open' because I knew it would be an invitation.'' Logan said.
Harris, 60, took a short trip to Houston, Texas (about three hours east of Austin) on October 25, during which she ran into Beyoncé and other stars.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) recalled on CNN Sunday that about four years ago, “I was vilified by some in the Democratic establishment because I appeared on Rogan's show.”
The “Joe Rogan Experience” podcast has long dominated the charts, and the comedian is considered to be highly influential among young men, a troublesome group of voters for Harris.
Mr. Logan later endorsed Mr. Trump as a presidential candidate. He previously supported the 83-year-old Sanders and described himself as a liberal, but over time he became disillusioned with California and the Democratic Party's response to the coronavirus pandemic.
In other podcast episodes, he said Harris' reluctance to have long talks was a red flag and implied that she might have been overly scripted throughout the 2024 campaign.
Late in the campaign, Harris actually stepped into unfriendly territory last month, giving a combative 30-minute interview with Fox News' Bret Baier.
The newspaper has reached out to a representative for Harris for comment.
