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Pres. Biden pushes pro-cannabis messaging.
Pres. Joe Biden’s campaign published a new page this week titled “JOE BIDEN IS REFORMING AMERICA’S APPROACH TO MARIJUANA.”
It repeatedly emphasizes how much more cannabis-friendly Biden is in comparison to Donald Trump.
“Donald Trump opposes marijuana reform and, as president, made the failed approach worse,” the page reads. “While the Trump Administration threatened federal prosecutions for marijuana in states where cannabis use is legal, Joe Biden granted federal pardons for all offenses of simple possession of marijuana – lifting barriers to housing, employment, and benefits for thousands of Americans.”
And it treats rescheduling – which is very much an ongoing process – like a done deal.
“Research tells us that marijuana is not as dangerous as we once believed – that’s why the Biden-Harris Administration took a major step to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug under federal law. The process was led by evidence and law and is a measure that criminal justice advocates, members of Congress, and the medical community have sought for years,” it reads.
Meanwhile, a major trucking group has shared some concerns about cannabis and road safety post-rescheduling.
Last week, the American Trucking Associations sent a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg about the federal rescheduling process, and how it could impact road safety. ATA is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry.
The group specifically asked Buttigieg if the Dept. of Transportation will continue its requirement for mandatory testing of safety-sensitive employees (like train conductors or pilots).
The group doesn’t have a position on legalization or whether non-safety sensitive employees should be tested, but, Dan Horvath, Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and Safety Policy for ATA wrote, “we remain concerned about the broad public health and safety consequences of reclassification on the national highway system and its users.”
It is “critical for transportation safety that we maintain the scope and scrutiny of testing that currently exists for individuals engaged in safety-sensitive industries, including commercial trucking, bussing, airlines, and rail,” Horvath wrote.
“Though ATA understands that the process and content of DOJ’s rulemaking falls outside the purview of DOT, we believe DOT and ATA share the goals of achieving zero highway fatalities and ensuring the commercial driving workforce is qualified to safely operate on our nation’s roadways.”
