Trump Suggests Marijuana May Be Downgraded as Dangerous Drug – Update for August 14, 2025

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I have been on vacation, taking a break with grandkids from posting. I am back, sunburned and tired but ready to keep reporting.

TRUMP MAY RECLASSIFY MARIJUANA

The Wall Street Journal reported last weekend that President Trump is considering reclassifying marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III, after marijuana companies have poured millions of dollars into Trump’s political groups.

At a $1 million-a-plate fundraiser at his New Jersey golf club earlier this month, Trump told attendees that he was interested in change, the people, who declined to be named, said.  The Biden administration began a reclassification move with a promised conclusion by December 2024, but Biden left office with that uncompleted.

The issue centers on whether marijuana should be reclassified as a Schedule III drug, which wouldn’t make the drug entirely legal but would ease restrictions on it. It would also allow for tax breaks for some marijuana companies and additional medical research.

At a Monday press conference, however, Trump confirmed that his administration is “looking at” reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug.

“We’re looking at reclassification, and we’ll make a determination over, I’d say, the next few weeks,” The Hill reported.

The Department of Health and Human Services recommended in 2023 that marijuana be reclassified as a Schedule III drug, one that has a “moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.”

Even if marijuana is rescheduled, it would still be a controlled substance that’s subject to federal rules and regulations. Rescheduling would neither decriminalize pot nor make it legal for recreational use on the federal level.

However, it would begin the long, slow slog toward decreasing marijuana penalties and perhaps retroactively revisiting existing marijuana-based sentences.

Wall Street Journal, Trump Weighs Reclassifying Marijuana as Less Dangerous Drug (August 9, 2025)

The Hill, Trump admin may reclassify marijuana: Would that make it legal in the US? (August 12, 2025)

~ Thomas L. Root