New acting DEA head has some backward views on cannabis 👀

OH, DEA
Acting DEA head is anti-cannabis

What happened: Derek Maltz, the acting head of the Drug Enforcement Agency, revealed some pretty backward views about cannabis in an interview last year. 

The DEA is perhaps the most crucial agency for the prospects of cannabis reform under the Trump 2.0 Administration. So far, not so good. 

What he said: “Marijuana is not the marijuana from the 70s or the 80s or the 90s. This is higher, pure-THC marijuana,” Maltz said. 

“I’ve talked to doctors about this. It’s actually causing psychosis, schizophrenia, depression, anxiety—so it’s really a gateway drug for these kids that don’t know any better.”

Why it matters: Of course, the ‘gateway hypothesis’ has been widely debunked, and the jury is very much out on the mental health effects of cannabis use, regardless of what people on either side of the debate say. 

There is evidence that frequent cannabis use in adolescence can lead to depression, anxiety, and other ailments — though cause and effect is still poorly understood by researchers. 

If Trump taps Maltz as the permanent DEA pick, it’s a bad sign for the process to reclassify cannabis from the most restrictive Schedule I to the less restrictive Schedule III of the federal Controlled Substances Act. 

You’ll remember the hearings were postponed for at least three months. We’ll see if Maltz is still in the job then.

-JB

“Pennsylvanians are buying cannabis, but now what’s happening is they’re paying taxes in other states,” Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, told reporters. “We need to change that. We need to be more competitive.” 

Shapiro is pushing to legalize cannabis during the upcoming legislative session. He called for legalization during the budget process last year, but no bill made progress in the legislature.

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Ninety-six percent of frequent cannabis consumers say they don’t trust the DEA to be an “unbiased proponent” of cannabis rescheduling, according to a new poll from NuggMD. Check out the full data here.

Here’s an uncut look into one of California company GlassHouse Brands’ greenhouses from Graham Farrar on X. Looks like our weekend. 

Peter Su: This is New York cannabis | The Rolling Stone

NFL legend Champ Bailey dishes on breaking stigma with cannabis, using while playing in league | Fox News

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The future of cannabis | Mercury News