DOJ Reclassifies Marijuana, Building on President Trump’s Earlier E.O.

President Donald Trump and his DOJ have moved to reclassify how marijuana is treated by the federal government, but not all Republicans agree with the changing marijuana policy.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on Thursday signed an order reclassifying state-licensed medical marijuana.

Blanche said that the move is based on “delivering on President Trump’s promise” to expand medical options for Americans.

“This rescheduling action allows for research on the safety and efficacy of this substance, ultimately providing patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information,” the statement read.

A White House official told the Daily Mail, “The Administration continues to expeditiously implement President Trump’s December executive order to increase medical marijuana research to close the gap between current medical marijuana use and medical knowledge.”

“Under the direction of President Trump and Acting Attorney General Blanche, DEA is expeditiously moving forward with the administrative hearing process — bringing consistency and oversight to an area that has lacked both,” Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Administrator Terry Cole said. “Our men and women in law enforcement remain committed to fighting drug cartels, the fentanyl epidemic, and protecting American lives.”

The Justice Department also announced updates to expedite the rulemaking process to remove the drug from Schedule 1 and place it in Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. Drugs classified as Schedule III include ketamine, anabolic steroids, and Tylenol with codeine. The Biden administration had moved to reschedule marijuana to Schedule III, but that rule was not finalized.

The order noted that “any form of marijuana other than in an FDA-approved drug product or marijuana subject to a state medical marijuana license remains a schedule I controlled substance, and those who handle such material remain subject to the regulatory controls, and administrative, civil, and criminal sanctions.”

Many states across the nation have increasingly legalized or expanded the use of medical marijuana. Twenty-four states and Washington, DC, have allowed for the recreational use of marijuana and 38 states allow for the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

Not all Republicans approve of the order.

Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), the Freedom Caucus chairman  and a physician, said, “We don’t need rescheduling to do medical research on marijuana–all we are doing is exposing more of our youth to an addictive drug.”