Trump Appoints Anti-Cannabis 'Just Say No' Drug Warrior As DEA Chief To 'Make America Safe Again'

President Donald Trump has tapped Terrance Cole, a former 22-year DEA official and Virginia public safety administrator, to take the helm of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Trump announced the appointment Tuesday afternoon in a social media post. "Together, we will save lives, and MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Bad News For Cannabis Rescheduling And Reform

Trump’s DEA choice dims hopes for a revival of the Biden administration-initiated marijuana rescheduling process.

Why exactly? Cole's stance on cannabis appears to align with the late former First Lady Nancy Reagan's 1980s-era "Just Say No" campaign that helped launched the deadly War on Drugs.

Read Also: $1 Trillion And 50 Years Later, Is The DEA’s War On Drugs A Failure?

Despite Trump previously expressing support during his campaign when he was up against VP Kamala Harris’s popular pro-cannabis stance, Cole's appointment provides no indication that the president will embrace cannabis reform anytime soon.

Trump’s Real Stand? Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Less than a month in, Trump has already appointed tough-on-crime figures to key oversight roles, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, who opposed medical cannabis in Florida and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) head Russ Vought, who supported federal intervention in cannabis shops. Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson, both from states without legal cannabis, are unlikely to advance pro-reform legislation.

Then there's the most important figure on the Trump team: Elon Musk, who recently praised drug testing for federal workers, or what remains of them.

Cole's History With Virginia's Anti-Marijuana Governor

Cole, who spent more than two decades with the DEA before retiring in 2020, was the acting regional director overseeing operations across Canada, Central America and Mexico. He also worked as a special agent and criminal investigator in Oklahoma, Colombia and Afghanistan earlier  in his career.

Following his DEA tenure, Cole joined Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin's administration as the state secretary of public safety and homeland security.

Youngkin, who has consistently opposed adult-use marijuana sales in Virginia, praised Cole's appointment.

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Photo courtesy of @DEAHQ