Politics
Former Trump Cabinet Official Claims Marijuana Rescheduling Would ‘Worsen The Crisis’ Of Crime
Ben Carson, who led President Donald Trump’s Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) during his first term, is speaking out against a marijuana rescheduling proposal that the current administration is actively considering.
In an op-ed published by Fox News on Thursday, the former HUD secretary suggested that reclassifying cannabis as a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) conflicts with the president’s efforts to end “the crime epidemic destroying American cities.”
He said while “there are many factors contributing to high crime rates, we cannot ignore one that’s dominated the national debate in recent weeks: the prevalent use of marijuana, a trend which is growing in our urban centers.”
“As the president starts cleaning up our streets, a cabal of Soros-funded activists are pushing for a dangerous Blue City-style policy that will worsen the crisis: rescheduling marijuana to Schedule III,” Carson claimed. “Even well-intentioned but misguided activists are now advocating to loosen marijuana restrictions through efforts to reschedule the drug.”
A Schedule III designation would not federally legalize cannabis. It would, however, acknowledge that it has medical use and allow state-licensed marijuana businesses to take federal tax deductions they’ve been barred from under an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E. It would also lift certain research barriers that apply to Schedule I drugs.
“I urge caution when we consider such sweeping changes. The intent may be compassionate, but the consequences are certainly harmful,” the former Trump administration official wrote. “As someone who’s spent decades caring for the health and well-being of families across America, I have seen firsthand how substance abuse devastates lives and communities.”
He also linked cannabis use with increased crime, and he argued that legalization is associated with “substance-use disorders” and “chronic homelessness.”
“Negative consequences follow liberalized drug policies like night follows day. It makes sense that order and civil society suffer the more you give license for individuals to engage in antisocial behavior such as abusing drugs,” Carson said. “More and more locations are learning the hard way that easing drug prohibitions can have disastrous consequences.”
“If one thing is clear from crime-controlled areas, it’s this: rampant drug use is fueling the fire. This truth is reflected across countless American cities,” he said. “As a former pediatric neurosurgeon who is deeply concerned for America’s future generations, I believe we must approach marijuana policy with caution and allow sound evidence to guide the debate.”
“The health, safety and stability of our families depend on thoughtful, responsible leadership—not experimenting with policies that fuel more crime and suffering. Let’s instead focus on what truly makes our towns and cities places where every American can thrive.”
The former Cabinet member’s comments come about eight years after he criticized the impact that criminal drug enforcement has on disadvantaged communities.
Meanwhile, Trump’s former press secretary Sean Spicer and his long-time advisor Roger Stone recently traded diverging takes on the prospect of the administration moving forward on marijuana rescheduling.
Stone separately made the case for reform in an op-ed for Marijuana Moment last week.
Nine GOP congressional lawmakers have called on the U.S. attorney general to reject what they called a “corrupt and flawed” marijuana rescheduling proposal.
In contrast to that letter from GOP lawmakers, a leading drug policy reform group recently launched a petition urging the president to go further than rescheduling by legalizing marijuana altogether.
