Trump DOJ Takes Major Step on Marijuana Rescheduling, Sparks Pushback

In accordance with an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in December 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) have moved the classification of FDA-approved cannabis products from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3, and plan to hold a hearing to explore the greater rescheduling of other cannabis products to the lower classification.

On Thursday, the DOJ issued this release.

In accordance with President Trump’s December 18, 2025, Executive Order on Increasing Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research, the Justice Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) today announced the issuance of an order immediately placing both FDA-approved products containing marijuana and marijuana products regulated by a state medical marijuana license in Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act, as well as the initiation of an expedited administrative hearing process to consider the broader rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III. The new hearing, beginning June 29, 2026, will provide a timely and legally compliant pathway to evaluate broader changes to marijuana’s status under federal law. Together, these actions provide immediate and long-term clarity to researchers, patients, and providers alike while still maintaining strict federal controls against illicit drug trafficking.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is placing both FDA-approved drug products containing marijuana, and medicinal marijuana products subject to a qualifying state-issued license in Schedule III under his authority to reschedule drugs to carry out the United States’ obligations under the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. This action recognizes the longstanding regulation of medical marijuana by state governments and the need for a common-sense approach to this reality.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the move on X:

Under the decisive leadership of @POTUS, this Department of Justice is delivering on his promise to improve American healthcare. This includes:

• Immediately rescheduling FDA-approved marijuana and state-licensed marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule IIl

• Ordering a new,… pic.twitter.com/DUtqKQgavl
— Acting AG Todd Blanche (@DAGToddBlanche) April 23, 2026

Under the decisive leadership of @POTUS, this Department of Justice is delivering on his promise to improve American healthcare. This includes:
• Immediately rescheduling FDA-approved marijuana and state-licensed marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule IIl
• Ordering a new, expedited hearing with set deadlines, to fully reschedule marijuana
These actions will enable more targeted, rigorous research into marijuana's safety and efficacy, expanding patients' access to treatments and empowering doctors to make better-informed healthcare decisions.

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While this has slipped under the radar of news coverage, it holds great import. While some sectors are praising the move, many others have their panties in a bunch. When Trump signed the EO in December, 20 Republican lawmakers signed a letter asking him to reconsider.

Growing the marijuana industry endangers the health and safety of Americans. The only winners from rescheduling will be bad actors like Communist China and drug traffickers.

I led a letter with 22 of my Senate colleagues voicing concerns about marijuana rescheduling. ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/eVDSAd3zlX
— Senator Ted Budd (@SenTedBuddNC) December 18, 2025

Of note: Several of those senators take Big Pharma and Tobacco money, which could reflect a vested interest in eliminating possible competition —particularly on the Big Pharma side. However, some legitimately see this move as opening the floodgates for nationwide legalization of marijuana use.

This is not the case, as one cannabis publication explains:

This is the most important detail to understand: the rescheduling applies specifically to FDA-approved marijuana products and state-licensed medical marijuana. Marijuana outside those systems — including recreational cannabis in adult-use states — remains classified as Schedule I. A new administrative hearing process launching June 29 will consider the broader rescheduling of all marijuana.
Cannabis has been classified as Schedule I since the early 1970s — the same category as heroin and LSD, defined as having no accepted medical use. Schedule III substances are recognized as having medical value with moderate to low potential for dependence. The reclassification moves FDA-approved marijuana products and state-licensed medical marijuana into that category. Forty states operate medical cannabis programs that are now effectively legitimized at the federal level. Only Idaho and Kansas maintain full prohibition. Recreational cannabis in adult-use states remains federally illegal under Schedule I pending the June 29 hearing process.

Just as the reclassification of certain psychedelics to help veterans suffering from PTSD opened the door for expanded research and potentially for more people outside of the veteran community to be legitimately helped, so this reclassification of marijuana for medical use will give the opportunity for research into more ways that cannabis can be used medically. This has been what advocates and patients who have been aided through cannabis use have been calling for.

I have a family member (I do not wish to name them for their protection) who was greatly helped by medical marijuana use. This person had ulcerative colitis, a horrific condition where your intestinal wall bleeds, you cannot process any nutrients, and it can lead to colorectal and other forms of cancer. This person was prescribed drugs and placed on a terrible carb-laden, minimally-animal protein based diet, which did ZERO to prevent the debilitating flare-ups that accompany this disease or alleviate the issues with their digestive system. The only thing that helped was medical marijuana. This person went from flare-ups and emergency room visits every few months, to one flare-up the entire year in their first year of use, to no flare-ups for several years, and finally into remission. They eat a regular, animal protein-rich diet, and have not had a flare-up in four years. Also of note, they are no longer using medical marijuana as an intervention, pointing to the fact that this type of intervention may not require long-term or permanent use.

So, it would be exceptionally helpful for other people who suffer from this and other conditions to find not just alleviation of symptoms, but the potential for cures. Having verified medical studies that show the whys and the hows on the alleviation of medical conditions through cannabis use, and greater discovery of directed cures for these conditions, would be a boon and a benefit for so many. The rescheduling by the DOJ would greatly assist in seeing this come about.

Just like the psychedelics rescheduling, it is a move that could have only happened under the Trump administration, which seeks to change the landscape on illness and chronic disease, and offer solutions for the health and well-being of all Americans, rather than maintenance of the status quo.

Editor's Note: President Trump is leading America into the "Golden Age" as Democrats try desperately to stop it.

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