Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is working his butt off to get all of the Republican Senators to sign off on him becoming the next Attorney General, and within that process he’s being asked the tough questions. Most of those are dealing with his dealings with Epstein, but some of it entails his plans with marijuana.
Senator Alex Padilla from California asked him why, when he issued an order to reclassify licensed medical cannabis to Schedule III in April, he skipped the notice-and-comment step that was typical for a Controlled Substance change.
“The Department of Justice delivered on President Trump’s promise to expand Americans’ access to medical treatment options. This rescheduling action allows for research on the safety and efficacy of this substance, ultimately providing patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information.”
With a political answer such as that, we see where this is going.
He was then asked if he supports any further rescheduling of cannabis beyond medical, and Blanche replied by saying he “will give the matter careful consideration after conferring with all relevant stakeholders, including DEA personnel.”
The true answer is probably “whatever Trump wants me to do, I’ll do it.” But that doesn’t sound very good in this setting.
And finally, to add more frustration to the way Blanche responds, he was asked whether or not relief from the 280E tax penalty would adhere to businesses with both medical and recreational marijuana: “Section 280e of the Internal Revenue Code applies to businesses engaged in trafficking in controlled substances in schedule I or II.” That’s it. Basically not answering the question whatsoever.
So who knows what he’ll do once he inevitably gets confirmed. The real tell is Trump’s desire to get people back on his side or not by making a populist move to legalize marijuana.
Read the original article at Marijuana Moment.
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Originally published on Weed Deep Dive.
