It’s been a busy month for marijuana. Last week, researchers found that the substance could potentially block COVID infections, and today, it’s been used by a would-be US senator to (quite literally) ignite his political hopes. 

Gary Chambers, a Democratic Senate candidate for Louisiana, has shown his support for the decriminalisation of weed by releasing a campaign ad in which he sparks and smokes his very own blunt. Titled “37 Seconds,” the advert shows Chambers seated comfortably in a leather chair, listing statistics about weed-related incarcerations while pulling the fattest tokes that politics has ever seen. 

Philosophising about the state of the world (a well-documented side-effect), Chambers goes on to outline the disproportionate marijuana arrest rates among people of colour, making a pretty convincing case against what he calls the “outdated ideology” of drug laws. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qj_FD25oREY

In a Tweet that accompanied the ad, Chambers said he “hopes … to not only destigmatise the use of marijuana, but also force a new conversation that creates the pathway to legalise this beneficial drug.” 

My first campaign ad, ‘37 Seconds.’ #JustLikeMe

I hope this ad works to not only destigmatize the use of marijuana, but also forces a new conversation that creates the pathway to legalize this beneficial drug, and forgive those who were arrested due to outdated ideology. pic.twitter.com/G0qKvmUGKD

— Gary Chambers (@GaryChambersJr) January 18, 2022

The election will be held later this year, but in the meantime, Chambers just scored himself a place on my dream blunt rotation list (David Attenborough will be glad to have him).