Senior Republicans Oppose Trump’s Cannabis Order
ATA Advocates for Safety in Trucking and Transportation as Congress Debates Drug-Related Concerns
Key Takeaways:
- Senior House Republicans urged President Donald Trump to reconsider his Dec. 18 order reclassifying marijuana as Schedule III, citing risks to children and public safety.
- Industry groups like ATA and Republicans warned rescheduling could endanger roadway safety, enable drug cartels and weaken DOT testing, noting marijuana drives nearly 60% of positive tests.
- Democrats including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer backed the move as a good first step.
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A group of senior House Republicans are urging President Donald Trump to think twice about reclassifying marijuana as a less severe drug, pointing to potential harm to the nation’s children and young adults.
In a Dec. 18 letter to the president, the lawmakers emphasized potential risks to public safety and national security, including the potential negative impact on roadway safety, safety-sensitive professions and associated risks linked to foreign criminal organizations.
Trump on Dec. 18 signed an executive order that directs his administration to reclassify cannabis into a less restrictive category. Doing so could pave the way for a regulatory shift with ramifications for commercial transportation.
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“Reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug will send the wrong message to America’s children, enable drug cartels and make our roads more dangerous,” the lawmakers wrote. Among the signatories were Republican Reps. Pete Sessions of Texas and Andy Harris of Maryland, also with two dozen others.
“We don’t need rescheduling to do medical research on marijuana — all we are doing is exposing more of our youth to an addictive drug,” stressed Harris, chairman of the conservative and influential House Freedom Caucus. Others Republicans lending their signature were Reps. Ron Estes of Kansas, Joe Wilson of South Carolina, Barry Loudermilk of Georgia, John Rose of Tennessee and Mike Flood of Nebraska.
On the other side of the aisle, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called Trump’s order reclassifying cannabis from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug “a step in the right direction.”
Pointing specifically to the economic effects of the move, Schumer said, “More must be done to decriminalize cannabis, ease overly restrictive banking regulations that stall industry progress in states where it is legal, and rectify the harms done by the ‘War on Drugs.’ ”
has cautioned about the potential risks to transportation safety. The group urged the Department of Transportation to coordinate with other agencies and Congress to ensure roadway safety won’t suffer amid the planned federal policy shift.
“While we do not hold a formal position on marijuana legalization or deregulation, we are concerned about the safety risks of rescheduling marijuana without explicit safeguards to preserve the testing authority and technical requirements that apply to DOT-regulated, safety-sensitive workers,” ATA Vice President of Safety Policy Brenna Lyles said in a statement. “A safe driver is a qualified driver. And a qualified driver is drug- and alcohol-free. Motor carriers must retain reliable, enforceable tools to ensure they are not putting unqualified drivers behind the wheel.
ATA is "concerned about the safety risks of rescheduling marijuana without explicit safeguards to preserve the testing authority" for DOT-regulated workers. (Jupiterimages/Getty Images)
“Without clear measures to ensure DOT’s drug- and alcohol-testing program retains — and is equipped to execute — marijuana testing authority, such a federal policy shift could have serious consequences for highway safety and the integrity of the national transportation network. This risk is exacerbated by the fact that there is currently no proven, widely accepted standard to determine marijuana impairment at roadside or before a driver begins operating a vehicle, making it far more difficult to prevent impaired driving. The stakes are not theoretical. Marijuana accounts for nearly 60% of all positive drug tests among commercial drivers subject to DOT testing requirements.”
In the order, Trump said, “The federal government’s long delay in recognizing the medical use of marijuana does not serve the Americans who report health benefits from the medical use of marijuana to ease chronic pain and other various medically recognized ailments. Americans who often seek alternative relief from chronic pain symptoms are particularly impacted. For example, in one research survey, 20% of participating United States veterans reported using fewer opioids as a result of their medical marijuana use.”
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