Trump’s Cannabis Rescheduling Pledge Faces Scrutiny as Study Highlights Safety

UK research by Prof. David Nutt bolsters case for moving cannabis from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3, aligning with Trump’s 2024 campaign promise.

In September 2024, President Donald Trump vowed to reschedule cannabis from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3, a move that would acknowledge its medical benefits and ease federal restrictions, aligning with a 2010 UK study by Prof. David Nutt.

Published in The Lancet, Nutt’s research, conducted by the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs in London, used multicriteria decision analysis to rank 20 drugs.

Cannabis scored 20 for harm, far below alcohol’s 72, which topped the list due to its social and economic toll.

President Trump’s campaign promise, made before his 2025 term began, aimed to “unlock” cannabis’s medical potential.

Yet, as of July 2025, the rescheduling process remains stalled, with no public statements from Trump’s administration.

Nutt’s findings challenge U.S. policies equating cannabis with heroin, urging science-driven reform as public support for legalization grows.

"We can live with the marijuana…. the way they've done it in Florida is very good"
– Donald Trump on Lex Fridman's podcast

Vote #YesOn3 for legal, tested, & safe cannabis!$MSOS #CannabisIndustry pic.twitter.com/ox3NMJYMIB

— The Dank Informer (@TheDankInformer) September 3, 2024

Good Trump:

Trump endorses legalizing marijuana.

"We do not need to ruin lives & waste Taxpayer Dollars arresting adults with personal amounts of it on them, and no one should grieve a loved one because they died from fentanyl laced marijuana."

He's right. pic.twitter.com/Hbt9QJyrro

— Hotep Jeffiziah Charles???? (@jeffcharlesjr) August 31, 2024