WASHINGTON, DC—Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) released the following statement as the federal hearing (DEA Hearing Docket No. 26-96) on whether to reschedule marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III begins.
“Rescheduling marijuana is a wolf in sheep’s clothing—it has nothing to do with criminal penalties, very little to do with research, and much more to do with marijuana industry profits and tax benefits,” said SAM President and CEO Kevin Sabet, a former three-time White House drug policy advisor who led the marijuana portfolio for the Obama Administration’s drug policy office. “We at SAM are proud to serve as an official designated party in the hearing, which commences one of the most consequential fortnights in modern drug policy history. We look forward to calling on a world expert, psychobiologist Dr. Bertha Madras of Harvard, and we are requesting a subpoena for DEA’s own expert pharmacologist, who herself has made the case previously for marijuana’s harms.”
“The stakes could not be higher for America’s kids, as the government is on the precipice of legitimizing America’s next public health disaster: the nascent marijuana industry,” Sabet continued. “This is an industry mimicking the worst of Big Tobacco as it sells very potent products, such as candies, cookies, gummies, waxes, and ice creams, targeted at our kids. The government’s own scientists have documented the addiction, psychosis, and developmental harm this drug inflicts on young people, and any medical use of the drug must be done within the bounds of an FDA-approved medication—not popular vote. By all accounts, raw marijuana meets the government’s own definition of Schedule I, and we are proud to be represented by former U.S. Attorney Bill Barr in vigorously making that case.”
Parents harmed by marijuana:
Heather and Randy Bacchus: “As parents of a young man who lost his life as a result of today’s high-potency marijuana, we know firsthand that today’s marijuana is more dangerous than ever. Rescheduling marijuana would be a grave mistake and would send the wrong message to today’s youth.”
Cindy Gresham: “I once believed marijuana was relatively harmless. After losing my 15-year-old daughter, Haley, to suicide following her struggle with today’s high-potency marijuana products, I learned how different these products are and the risks they can pose to youth. I respectfully urge the DEA to carefully consider families like mine before rescheduling marijuana.”
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