It isn’t quite the ruckus involving the Jeffrey Epstein docs, but there is a quieter, more important conflict inside Trump world over weed — namely whether the president should legalize it and just how legal it should be, The Post has learned
And according to my sources, Trump is in a compromising mood.
He appears to be moving closer to making a decision in the coming weeks to make weed something less criminal in the eyes of the federal government.
Trump is ready, several MAGA pro-pot sources tell me, to make a decision on at least reclassifying weed as a so-called Schedule III drug, putting it on par with semi-controlled substances like anabolic steroids.
Not to get too far into the proverbial weeds, but Pot Inc. wants marijuana reclassified so it’s not being lumped in with hard drugs like heroin — and it’s a drama these pages first covered in late April. That way this booming business continues to grow with access to the banking system as cultural norms continue to shift and the majority of Americans see pot as no more dangerous than booze. Tax revenues would flow into federal coffers as the industry expands.
There are headwinds. Many MAGA types believe pot is leading to cultural rot. Breeding a population of stoners isn’t good for the country since the pot today is far stronger than the joints Cheech & Chong rolled years ago.
Trump barely drinks and personally hates anything that dulls the senses. He’s a law-and-order guy — witness his takeover of DC policing over quality-of-life issues, including the persistent smell of pot almost everywhere you walk.
That said, the president seems to be leaning toward a compromise on federal legalization, including allowing for medical use based on evidence of its efficacy in severe pain relief.
He’s also said to be compelled by the business and the political argument of going soft on pot. He’s done that before, doing his famous 180 on crypto for votes during the 2024 election and delivering with deregulation that is propelling the blockchain industry.
There are an estimated 17 million-plus Americans who use pot regularly, and Trump understands math. The pot lobby could help in key races as the midterms approach.
MAGA loyalist Matt Gaetz, the former Florida congressman and Trump’s initial pick for attorney general, is one who believes embracing pot would further expand Trump’s base among working-class people of all races, where pot u sage is most prevalent.
“President Trump would cement [these voters] for Republicans for 25 years by ‘rescheduling’ marijuana,” Gaetz said. “Obama always wanted to do it but didn’t have the balls.” Gaetz added that Biden with his “autopen presidency” was too busy destroying the country to care. “This is yet another opportunity for Trump to notch a generational win where Ob- ama and Joe Biden failed.”
Longtime hedge fund trader Marc Cohodes is even more adamant about legalizing marijuana. He is both an investor in Pot Inc. and a medical user after shoulder surgery.
“If he totally legalizes, Trump will totally destroy the Democratic Party,” Cohodes tells me. “Polls show that most Americans want this legalized. Trump will turn the GOP into the people’s party.”
Trump’s options include totally “declassifying” pot, making it 100% legal in the eyes of federal law. He could also “reschedule” pot as a “Schedule III” controlled substance, along the lines of anabolic steroids
and other drugs that the feds have modestly blessed for specific medical-related uses.
If he does nothing, pot would r emain a Schedule I drug, where the federal government views it as a highly controlled substance.
Up to $60 billion annually
The various distinctions matter for the pot industry, which is estimated to rake in between $40 billion and $60 billion a year. While marijuana is fully legal or decriminalized in most states, without the federal government taking it off the Schedule I list it can’t be “banked.”
Wall Street shies away from underwriting the stock of any company that in Pot Inc. parlance “touches the plant.” If Wall Street can begin underwriting pot stocks, financing US-based growers, for example, Pot Inc. could grow exponentially.
Still, legalization skeptics on Trump’s team will have a say. New Drug Enforcement Administration chief Terry Cole is a veteran at an agency with a long anti-pot bias.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the head of the Department of Health and H uman Services, has spoken about decriminalizing weed but also how there are negative health effects from consuming the “high-potency” stuff.
Many critics say today’s bud has hallucinogenic effects, and could be a gateway to more dangerous stuff like opioids.
That’s why Gaetz thinks Trump won’t go for full legalization and allow it only for medical use. Ditto for longtime Trump political guru Roger Stone. “I don’t think he ever completely de-schedules it, which is what I would do,” Stone tells me.
Cohodes says not going all the way would be a mistake.
First, banking for Pot Inc. would remain difficult if it is only re- scheduled. Plus, making it totally legal could help decimate a major source of income for the various drug cartels. It would be age-restricted by the government.
“By eliminating prohibition, illegal cartels get removed because legal businesses not currently banked become bankable,” Cohodes said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
