Rep. Matt Gaetz, throughout a stint in its place cable information host, promoted marijuana legalization after the Department of Health and Human Services moved to decontrol the drug.

“Perhaps the worst decision made by the U.S. government in 1970 was to begin the war on drugs through the Controlled Substances Act,” Mr. Gaetz, Florida Republican, stated on Newsmax.

The HHS Department final month advisable loosening restrictions on hashish by reclassifying it from a Schedule 1 drug to a Schedule III drug, which is outlined by the Drug Enforcement Administration as much less addictive and with a decrease danger of abuse than both Schedule 1 or Schedule II medication.

Currently, marijuana is labeled as a Schedule 1 drug, which is taken into account extra harmful than fentanyl. Schedule 1 medication are additionally labeled as having no accepted medical use. Other Schedule 1 medication embrace heroin, LSD and ecstasy.

Mr. Gaetz stated the federal government ought to deal with ending the nation’s lethal epidemic of fentanyl abuse and never prosecuting marijuana instances.

“If something is killing 100,000 Americans every year, it should definitely be the top priority of our government,” Mr. Gaetz stated.

The Biden administration has taken steps to cut back the criminalization of marijuana, which is authorized in dozens of states however stays unlawful on the federal stage.

Last October, the president pardoned all prior federal offenses of marijuana possession and referred to as on the well being division and Attorney General Merrick Garland to begin the method of adjusting the drug’s scheduling.

On the present, Mr. Gaetz interviewed John Morgan, a lawyer and marijuana advocate nicknamed “the pot daddy,” after he donated to marijuana reform initiatives.

“I have been talking to the president about this before he was president,” stated Mr. Morgan, a supporter of Mr. Biden. “Every time I’ve seen him I bring it up, and all I can say is it’s high time.”

Mr. Morgan stated this transfer to reschedule marijuana is “a step in the right direction,” and it “has to happen.”

“The danger is not marijuana,” he stated. “The danger is the pharmaceutical industry and the liquor industry. Marijuana is nothing.”

Mr. Gaetz agreed with Mr. Morgan, including that he believes that marijuana reform will get blocked by Big Pharma as a result of they need the flexibility to regulate it.

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