A GOP congressman says President Donald Trump doesn’t have the authority to unilaterally reschedule marijuana via executive order. But while lawmakers could overrule any administrative move to enact the reform, it would be a “heavy lift” in the Republican-controlled Congress, he acknowledged.
Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD)—a staunch prohibitionist who recently helped secure provisions in a spending bill Trump signed that would effectively recriminalize hemp—shared his views about the marijuana rescheduling proposal and limitations of a Schedule III reclassification under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) on Tuesday during a webinar organized by the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA).
Harris adamantly opposes the potential rescheduling action, arguing that it would further normalize marijuana use and do little to expand research opportunities to examine the plant’s health benefits or risks. And he said the president was mistaken when he said on Monday that reclassification is necessary to conduct the research.
The congressman also argued that Trump is “technically” wrong if he’s under the impression he can move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III with a stroke of the pen on an executive order. Rescheduling wouldn’t legalize marijuana, but it’d be a historically symbolic recognition that cannabis holds medical value, while
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