White House Highlights Marijuana Pardons Amid Skepticism Over Cannabis Rescheduling Efforts

As the 2024 elections loom, presidential candidates are busy leveraging the popularity of cannabis reform. While former President Donald Trump is using his newly found pro-cannabis stance to boost his popularity among Democrats and Independents, the Biden-Harris administration has taken a different approach.

On Friday, the White House revealed an updated webpage highlighting accomplishments attributed to the administration. Among the new sections is one called "Issued a Review to Reschedule Marijuana," which features President Joe Biden's mass cannabis pardons, reported Marijuana Moment's Kyle Jaeger.

The new language and reduced title of the section are more in line with skepticism among industry stakeholders and supporters than about any major actions on cannabis rescheduling before the election.

In August, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced a delay in the rescheduling of marijuana noting it would hold an administrative hearing for December 2, pushing any decision on the matter until after the November elections. The section was previously titled "Ending our Failed Approach to Marijuana."

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"To help remedy our country's failed approach to marijuana, including racial disparities, the Administration also launched the process to reclassify marijuana under federal law," the section reads. "Marijuana is currently a Schedule I drug, higher than the classification for fentanyl and methamphetamine—drugs driving our nation's overdose epidemic."

Biden's Mass Marijuana Pardons

Much like in its previous record page from 2022, the White House highlighted Biden's marijuana pardons.

However, as acknowledged by Biden himself, his marijuana pardons did not expunge records, despite previous claims. At a campaign event in Philadelphia earlier this year with VP Kamala Harris, Biden reiterated his commitment to ensuring that no one should be in jail merely for using or possessing marijuana.  

Meanwhile, Democratic presidential candidate Harris has been vociferous about her pro-legalization stance. Harris is the first presidential candidate from a major party to explicitly advocate for marijuana reform.

Pablo Zuanic, an equity analyst in the cannabis space said that Harris, if elected, could continue the Biden administration’s work on rescheduling but also take it a step further.

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