Trump Is First 'Republican President' With A Pathway To Cannabis Reform, Says Former Adviser

Bryan Lanza, a former adviser to President-elect Donald Trump and now a lobbyist for the cannabis industry, says the incoming administration may pave the way for significant marijuana policy reforms. However, he cautions that full federal legalization of cannabis is unlikely within the next four years.

In a recent interview on the Inside Cultivation podcast, Lanza, who served on Trump's 2016 transition team and worked on his 2024 campaign, discussed what the future could hold for federal cannabis policy under a Trump White House.

"This is the first time that we have a Republican president that has given us a pathway to what he's comfortable with," Lanza said, referring to Trump's unexpected cannabis-related remarks during the campaign when he described the moment as a "good opportunity" for the industry to make progress. During his campaign, Trump said he'd reschedule cannabis, which would provide access to banking services for marijuana companies and open the doors to scientific research.

Read Also: Donald Trump’s Evolving Stance On Marijuana: Is Cannabis Legalization Finally On His Agenda?

Lanza predicted that the ongoing process to reschedule cannabis under federal law would likely conclude in early 2025, aligning with Trump's stated support for regulating medical marijuana.

"At the end of the day, when a decision is made, he expects his team to execute. And President Trump has made a decision where he is in this space, and it's incumbent on those who go work for him to know that's what he wants to execute, and they're going to execute," Lanza said.

“Are there going to be obstacles? There's always obstacles in everything, right?" he said, adding that there are "obviously coalitions that are going to be against this." Lanza mentioned big Pharma as one of them.

Trump's potential support for reforms could influence Congress to act on measures such as banking protections for cannabis businesses. Yet, Lanza remains skeptical about achieving full legalization. "Four years is not long enough to accomplish all the goals we need to do in the cannabis space," he said while suggesting that a unified front is the best way to achieve progress.

“If you splinter off and you have too many different voices going in too many different directions, I guarantee you that is a recipe for failure—and it is a missed opportunity, because Trump is giving you his roadmap," Lanza said.

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