Trump seeks to cut restrictions on marijuana through planned order
Trump is reportedly prepared to push the federal government to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III drugs
Donald Trump is poised to issue an order directing federal agencies to ease restrictions on marijuana.
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The President is reportedly posied to issue an executive order directing federal agencies to ease restrictions on the drug.
Reports suggest Mr Trump is prepared to push the federal government to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III drugs under the Controlled Substances Act.
The president reportedly held a meeting at the White House on Wednesday with marijuana industry executives, alongside Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz.
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The group was joined by Republican U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson via phone, who reportedly expressed apprehension with the idea and cited studies for not making the move.
Trump reportedly left that conversation prepared to move forward with his executive action but a White House official told the Washington Post that a final decision has not been made and that the president could possibly change his mind.
A presidential push to reclassify the drug under federal law would result in easing barriers to research and business practices for enterprises.
The reclassification from Schedule I, which includes substances like heroin, to Schedule III, would move the drug to the same category of prescription drugs like Tylenol with codeine, as well as certain steroid and hormone treatments.
Cat Packer, director of Drug Markets and Legal Regulation at Drug Policy Alliance, said: "A majority of Black Americans live in the south, like Texas and Florida and Georgia, where they’re continuing to bear the brunt of disparate harms.
"I don’t know that without federal leadership, both in Congress and from a presidential administration, those types of harms will not only not be eliminated, but potentially exacerbated when large immigrant communities are under attack."
In 2022, President Biden ordered the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Justice to review of how marijuana is scheduled under federal law.
That process remained stalled in the rule-making process at the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).