Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to serve as the next U.S. attorney general—a selection that would put one of the only GOP members of Congress who actively supports and voted for marijuana legalization into the nation’s top law enforcement position.
As Trump works to put together his cabinet, the choice of Gaetz stands out as one of the most positive signals that the state-level cannabis marketplace will not be impeded under his administration. And it also bodes well for the ongoing Biden administration-led marijuana rescheduling effort that Trump has endorsed. That’s assuming, however, that Gaetz is confirmed by the Senate to assume the position.
Gaetz was one of three Republican members of the House to approve a Democratic-led bill to federally legalize marijuana, titled the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act in 2022. He also supported a prior version of the legislation despite his concerns with equity-focused provisions.
The congressman also said last year that he’s concerned that if the federal government doesn’t “go further” than simply moving marijuana to a lower drug schedule, large pharmaceutical companies might be able to overtake the cannabis industry.
While Gaetz voted in favor of a federal legalization bill, he actually departed from Trump on a state-level measure to legalize adult-use cannabis in Florida that failed at the ballot this month. He said in August that the reform should be enacted statutorily so that there’s more flexibility for the legislature to adjust the law in the future.
“Regardless of how someone feels about abortion or marijuana, I don’t believe that those issues should be resolved in the state Constitution,” he said.
The congressman pointed out that a limited medical cannabis bill—which he sponsored during his time in the Florida legislature—“had lots of flaws” that required fixes that would have been more difficult to address if the policy change had been written into the state Constitution.
Gaetz also joined Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and lawyer John Morgan in 2019 to advocate for expanding the medical marijuana bill he helped usher into law by making it so patients had access to smokable products.
Read more at Marijuana Moment