{"id":81075,"date":"2025-04-30T07:55:28","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T15:55:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/04\/30\/trumps-pick-to-lead-dea-says-marijuana-rescheduling-review-will-be-one-of-my-first-priorities-in-the-job\/"},"modified":"2025-04-30T19:46:53","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T03:46:53","slug":"trumps-pick-to-lead-dea-says-marijuana-rescheduling-review-will-be-one-of-my-first-priorities-in-the-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/04\/30\/trumps-pick-to-lead-dea-says-marijuana-rescheduling-review-will-be-one-of-my-first-priorities-in-the-job\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s Pick To Lead DEA Says Marijuana Rescheduling Review Will Be \u2018One Of My First Priorities\u2019 In The Job"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump\u2019s pick to lead the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says examining a proposal to federally reschedule marijuana will be \u201cone of my first priorities\u201d if he\u2019s confirmed for the role, saying it\u2019s \u201ctime to move forward\u201d on the stalled process.<\/p>\n

However, DEA administrator nominee Terrance Cole repeatedly declined to commit to support the specific proposed rule to move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) that was initiated under the Biden administration.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf confirmed, it\u2019ll be one of my first priorities when I arrived at DEA to see where we are in the administrative process,\u201d Cole told Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. \u201cI\u2019m not familiar exactly where we are, but I know the process has been delayed numerous times\u2014and it\u2019s time to move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pressed on his position on the specific proposal to move marijuana to Schedule III, he said, \u201cI need to understand more where [agencies] are and look at the science behind it and listen to the experts and really understand where they are in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n

Watch the DEA nominee discuss marijuana, starting at 1:29:35 and 1:42:45 into the video below:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u201cWe know where we are,\u201d Padilla told the nominee. \u201cWe know what the directive is: Get it to Schedule III,\u201d he said, referring to a rescheduling recommendation from the Department of Health and Human Services.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you committed to seeing it to fruition?\u201d the senator asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know. I haven\u2019t seen it,\u201d Cole said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo you\u2019re leaving the door open to changing course,\u201d the senator said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m leaving the door open to studying everything that\u2019s been done so far, so I can make a determination,\u201d the prospective DEA head said.<\/p>\n

Cole also said in response to questions from Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) at the hearing<\/a> that he feels it\u2019s appropriate to form a \u201cworking group\u201d to look at the federal-state marijuana law disconnect in order to \u201cstay ahead of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tillis raised concerns he had about the fact that an Indian tribe has legalized marijuana for adult use on their territory<\/a> within North Carolina, which has not yet enacted legalization at the state level.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe whole patchwork of state laws around legal marijuana, medical marijuana, it\u2019s very confusing. I think it\u2019s out of control,\u201d the senator said. \u201cAnd, ultimately, I believe the United States, the federal government, needs to set boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s pretty clear to me that most states are going to legalize it at some level\u2014so this is not intended to be a message about the future of marijuana, but it\u2019s about the present of marijuana,\u201d he said before asking the nominee if he would commit \u201cto look through the mechanics of this operation and give me a definitive answers to questions\u201d he raised with the prior administration last year.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir, you have my commitment, Cole said, adding that he\u2019d want to first consult with the U.S. attorney in the region as well as DEA counsel to provide an adequate response.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoes it make sense, at some point for law enforcement purposes, that we should come up with the rules of the road so there\u2019s consistent application [of marijuana laws] across the 50 states?\u201d Tillis asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this is definitely worthy of a working group, because, to your earlier points, we need to stay ahead of it,\u201d Cole said.<\/p>\n

The lines of questioning didn\u2019t produce a definitive answer as to the question of where Cole ultimately stands on marijuana policy or how he\u2019d treat the rescheduling process if confirmed. But it does signal he\u2019s given the issue some amount of thought as he potentially enters into the critical role of DEA administrator.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo matter what you think of Senator Tom Tillis\u2018s questions or comments, anytime the issue of cannabis is brought up in the Senate Judiciary Committee, we are winning,\u201d Don Murphy, co-founder of American Cannabis Collective, told Marijuana Moment. \u201cWe are making incremental steps that will lead to an end to prohibition sooner rather than later.\u201d<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s not everyday I get to talk to the new DEA Administrator about the benefits of medical #cannabis<\/a> and the 250 pages of HHS documented evidence calling for it to be rescheduled\u2026 but I did today! pic.twitter.com\/Q4zGTuGbns<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Don Murphy (@donmurphy12a) April 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Cole has previously voiced concerns about the dangers of marijuana<\/a>\u00a0and linked its use to higher suicide risk among youth.<\/p>\n

The nominee worked at DEA for 21 years and currently serves as Virginia\u2019s secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security (PSHS), where part of his responsibility is to oversee the state Cannabis Control Authority (CCA).<\/p>\n

After a visit to CCA\u2019s office last year, Cole posted on LinkedIn: \u201cEverybody knows my stance on marijuana after 30 plus years in law enforcement, so don\u2019t even ask!\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump initially chose\u00a0Hillsborough County, Florida Sheriff Chad Chronister to lead DEA<\/a>, but the prospective nominee\u2014who strongly advocated for marijuana decriminalization\u2014withdrew from consideration in January amid scrutiny from conservative lawmakers over the sheriff\u2019s record on COVID-related public safety enforcement actions.<\/p>\n

As far as the marijuana rescheduling process is concerned, DEA recently notified an agency judge that the proceedings are still on hold<\/a>\u2014with no future actions currently scheduled as the matter sits before the acting administrator, Derek Maltz, who has called cannabis a \u201cgateway drug\u201d and linked its use to psychosis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, although shutting down licensed marijuana dispensaries doesn\u2019t \u201crise to the top\u201d of his priorities, a U.S. attorney who recently warned a Washington, D.C. cannabis shop about potential federal law violations<\/a>\u00a0says his \u201cinstinct is that it shouldn\u2019t be in the community.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Separately, last week, an activist who received a pardon for a marijuana-related conviction during Trump\u2019s first term\u00a0paid a visit to the White House, discussing future clemency options with the recently appointed \u201cpardon czar.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

A marijuana industry-backed political action committee (PAC) has also released a series of ads over recent weeks that have attacked Biden\u2019s cannabis policy record as well as the nation of Canada, promoting sometimes misleading claims about the last administration while making the case that Trump can deliver on reform<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Its latest ad accused former President Joe Biden and his DEA of waging a \u201cdeep state war\u201d against medical cannabis patients<\/a>\u2014but without mentioning that the former president himself initiated the rescheduling process that marijuana companies want to see completed under Trump.<\/p>\n

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Pennsylvania Governor Will Put Marijuana Legalization In His Budget, But Top GOP Senator Remains Skeptical<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The post Trump\u2019s Pick To Lead DEA Says Marijuana Rescheduling Review Will Be \u2018One Of My First Priorities\u2019 In The Job<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\nRead More: Trump\u2019s Pick To Lead DEA Says Marijuana Rescheduling Review Will Be \u2018One Of My First Priorities\u2019 In The Job<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Donald Trump\u2019s pick to lead the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says examining a proposal to federally reschedule marijuana will be \u201cone of my first priorities\u201d if he\u2019s confirmed for the role, saying it\u2019s \u201ctime to move forward\u201d on the stalled process. However, DEA administrator nominee Terrance Cole repeatedly declinedContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81,126],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81075"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81075"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81075\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81076,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81075\/revisions\/81076"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81075"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81075"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81075"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}