President Donald Trump said on Monday that his administration will “make a determination over the next few weeks” on whether to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug.
During a press conference in the White House Briefing Room, Trump was asked about a Wall Street Journal report stating that he was considering a possible marijuana reclassification, an issue that has caused some division among Trump’s base. The president acknowledged that marijuana reclassification is a “very complicated subject.”
“Some people hate the whole concept of marijuana because if it does bad for the children, it does bad for people older than children,” Trump said.
“It’s a very complicated subject, the subject of marijuana,” he added. “I’ve heard great things having to do with medical [marijuana], and I’ve [heard] bad things having to do with just about everything else.”
President Trump on marijuana: “We’re looking at reclassification and we’ll make a determination over the next few weeks.” pic.twitter.com/GTiYKogmuA
— CSPAN (@cspan) August 11, 2025
Trump reportedly floated the idea of reclassifying marijuana during a fundraiser at his New Jersey golf club earlier this month in front of guests that included Kim Rivers, the CEO of Trulieve, one of the largest marijuana companies in the United States. The discussions within the Trump administration focus on whether weed should be reclassified as a Schedule III drug, which would drop certain restrictions on marijuana without completely legalizing it, according to the WSJ.
While some states have passed laws legalizing recreational and medical marijuana use, it is still listed as a Schedule I drug under federal law. Schedule I means a drug has “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” Reclassifying marijuana as Schedule III would put the drug in the same category as drugs that have “a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.”
Marijuana reclassification was pursued by the Biden administration, but it wasn’t achieved before President Joe Biden left office in January. Trump signaled his support for recreational marijuana last year when he voted to legalize the drug in Florida last year, pitting himself against conservatives such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. The marijuana amendment push in Florida received 56%, falling just short of the 60% needed to pass it into law.
A senior White House official told the WSJ that Trump wants to take on issues like marijuana that are viewed as “80-20 cultural issues.” Trump’s inroads among independent and younger voters could also make the reclassification push more attractive to the Trump administration as Republicans seek to hold onto the momentum gained in the 2024 election as the 2026 midterm elections approach.
The campaign to downgrade marijuana’s drug classification also receives a lot of money. Marijuana companies have donated millions of dollars to the American Rights and Reform PAC, which pushes to “end the war on medical cannabis.” Consultants working for Trulieve have presented Trump’s team with polling that shows that more than 80% of independent voters support reclassifying marijuana, the WSJ reported.
“This is not calling for decriminalization or legalization but simply knocking it down a few notches on the criminal scale,” Trump campaign adviser Alex Bruesewitz told the WSJ. “It’s probably targeted more to a younger demographic, where the president has made great headway.” Bruesewitz was paid $300,000 by the American Rights and Reform PAC to work on social media and advertisements.
Some independents and conservatives, however, strongly oppose the effort to reclassify marijuana and want the federal government to ramp up enforcement of existing laws on marijuana.
“Our society thrived when everyone was smoking cigarettes and drinking whiskey. We became the most powerful nation in the world with liquor and nicotine. No country of potheads has ever thrived, or ever achieved anything at all,” wrote Daily Wire host Matt Walsh. “Every city that legalized it became an even bigger s***hole basically overnight. The entire history of western civilization tells us that marijuana is far, far worse for society.”
Walsh added that the federal government should be doing “exactly the opposite” of what the Trump administration is considering.
Other independents and conservatives also chimed in, expressing their disapproval of reclassifying marijuana.
“Marijuana mass normalization has been a disaster for the United States,” said Breaking Points host Saagar Enjeti. “Our cities stink, our kids are literally being poisoned and made stupid, DWIs are skyrocketing and the promised revenue doesn’t even come close to making up the mass social chaos.”
“Weed is a scourge, rewarding some of the worst elements of society while sapping the will and productivity of far too many citizens, especially young men,” added conservative commentator Steve Cortes. “MAGA must focus on quality of life issues — we can do so much better than cities that reek of disgusting smoke.”