Trump Considers Rescheduling Cannabis Amid Contradictions in Drug Policy
Former President Donald Trump is reportedly considering rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act, marking the most significant shift in US federal drug policy in more than fifty years coming from a Republican administration. The Department of Health and Human Services recommended this rescheduling in 2023, with momentum building since August when Trump indicated he was exploring the idea.
Approximately 43,000 public comments were submitted on the proposal, with around 70% supporting rescheduling. While this change would not legalise or decriminalise cannabis federally, it would ease restrictions such as IRS 280E, reducing tax burdens and allowing standard business deductions for cannabis companies, a move that has caused cannabis stocks to surge up to 54% on news leaks.
However, many federal penalties and eligibility restrictions across housing, student loans, and travel visas could still apply. The reform also highlights a contradiction in US drug policy: a domestic liberalisation of cannabis contrasting with an intensified international war on drugs, including aggressive rhetoric against drug-trafficking nations.
For more meaningful reform, advocates argue cannabis should be entirely removed from the Controlled Substances Act, with profits taxed and reinvested in disenfranchised communities, including those in Latin America. The current plan stops short of these measures.
The reform aligns with Trump’s "America First" worldview, favoring domestic hyper-commercialisation of cannabis while maintaining an aggressive mercantilist posture abroad.
