Trump would favor reclassifying cannabis as a less dangerous drug

Photo: Alex Brandon Associated Press Donald Trump at a political rally in Wisconsin, September 7

Lindsay Whitehurst – Associated Press and Stephany Matat – Associated Press in Washington

Published yesterday at 8:23 p.m.

• United States

Donald Trump has signaled support for a potentially historic federal policy change to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, aligning his position with his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris.

The common ground reflects a major shift toward broad public support for legalization in recent years and marks the first time both major-party presidential candidates have backed broad cannabis reform, according to the U.S. Cannabis Council.

The Republican presidential candidate posted on his social media platform Sunday night that he would “continue to focus on research to unlock medical uses of marijuana as a Schedule 3 drug,” and also wrote that he would vote “yes” on a proposal to allow the sale of marijuana to adults for any reason in Florida.

Coming shortly before the two party leaders meet for a crucial debate, Mr. Trump’s post opens the possibility that he could criticize Ms. Harris for her past prosecutions of cannabis while she was district attorney in San Francisco. Since drug prosecutions disproportionately affect nonwhite defendants in the United States, the line of attack could also fit Mr. Trump’s efforts to boost his support among nonwhite men.

Ms. Harris supports decriminalization and has called it “absurd” that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) now classifies marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug alongside heroin and LSD. Earlier in her career, she oversaw enforcement of marijuana laws and opposed legalizing adult-use recreational use in California while running for attorney general in 2010.

Ms. Harris has faced attacks on her prosecutorial record before, including from Democrat Tulsi Gabbard, who became a Trump supporter and ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020 and announced in 2022 that she was leaving the party.

Mr. Trump said during his 2016 campaign that cannabis policy should be left to the states. However, during his tenure in the White House, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions lifted an Obama-era policy that prevented federal authorities from cracking down on marijuana in states where the drug is legal.

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The DEA’s process to change the federal drug classification is already underway, prompted by President Joe Biden’s call for a review. The DEA has not made a final decision on the change, which would not fully legalize recreational marijuana. It may not decide until the next presidential administration, which will shed light on the candidates’ positions.

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Americans in favor of legalization

Federal drug policy has lagged behind that of many states in recent years years, 38 of which have already legalized medical marijuana and 24 legalizing recreational use.

About 70 percent of adults supported legalization in a Gallup poll last year, the highest level ever recorded by the polling firm and more than double the 3 in 10 who backed it in 2000. Support was even higher among young voters, a large demographic in the seven key swing states.

“We believe cannabis reform is a winning issue,” David Culver, senior vice president of public affairs at the U.S. Cannabis Council, said in a statement Monday.

The federal policy shift would not result in outright legalization of recreational marijuana. Instead, it would move marijuana from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3, alongside ketamine and some anabolic steroids.

The proposed change faces opposition from advocates, who say there is not enough data, and from attorneys general in more than a dozen states, according to the group Smart Approaches to Marijuana.

Mr. Trump spoke on the issue the same day that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a fellow Republican who has already challenged him for the 2024 presidential nomination, spoke at City Church in Tallahassee, where he vehemently opposed two ballot initiatives in November: one to enshrine abortion rights and the other to legalize recreational marijuana.

For months, DeSantis has publicly opposed the marijuana amendment, saying it would diminish the quality of life in Florida cities by leaving the smell of marijuana in the air.

The Florida Republican Party also formally denounced the amendment, saying in a May resolution that it would “benefit powerful marijuana special interests, while endangering children and jeopardizing Florida’s family-friendly business and tourism climate.”