A Democrat making a bid for a Texas House seat is trying to create a buzz with a new campaign ad backing the legalization of marijuana by showing her smoking what appears to be a marijuana cigarette and using a bong.
Sally Duval stated in the ad posted Monday on her X account that it's "high time for a change in Texas."
Duval is trying to unseat first-term incumbent Carrie Isaac in the heavily Republican 73rd district, which encompasses Comal County and parts of Hays County between Austin and San Antonio. Isaac was elected in 2022 with 70.4% of the vote, according to Ballotpedia.
The ad begins with a shot of Duval lighting and smoking a rather large cigarette that appears to be filled with marijuana.
"You might already know what's in this, but do you know who has no idea and no way to test it?" Duval said. "Law enforcement.
"They arrest people every day for marijuana possession, but they don't have the funding to test if it's illegal marijuana or a federally legal hemp product."
She noted that although the use of recreational marijuana is illegal in Texas, some hemp products such as Delta 8 and Delta 9 that can give users a high are legally sold. She then criticized an effort by Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to ban and regulate products such as Delta 8 and Delta 9 and restrict their sale to children.
"It doesn't take a genius to figure out you can't do both of these things," Duval said. "Fortunately, we don't have to choose between safety and legalization. We can and should have both, but it's going to take leaders who know enough and care enough to do what's right.
"Texans should have the freedom to consume these products if they want to."
The advertisement ends with Duval inhaling from a bong and coughing.
Newsmax reached out to Isaac's campaign for comment.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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