Donald Trump Marijuana: Will Cabinet Appointments Influence Policy? Attorney General Jeff Sessions Coy On Plans

Only two of President Donald Trump’s cabinet picks had been approved by congressional committees as of Thursday. Retired Marine Gen. John Kelly won a thumbs up to head of the Department of Homeland Security while retired Gen. James "Mad Dog" Mattis was approved as defense secretary.

Kelly has quite an impressive track record for slowing the transport and distribution of narcotics and weapons into the U.S. from neighboring countries in the Southern Hemisphere, and he’s also been a vocal opponent of legalizing marijuana.

In an interview with Military Times, Kelly said he couldn’t get on board with legalizing marijuana, which he considers a “gateway drug,” because it undermined U.S. efforts to stop the flow of harder substances like heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine into the country. However, Kelly did have a softer approach regarding medical marijuana, telling the publication, “If it has a medical use – I’m not a doctor but I’m told it has medical use – whether it's veterans or anyone else, if it helps people then fine. Medicine is medicine.”

Mattis, who served as head of U.S. Central Command 2010-13, hasn’t been as vocal regarding his views on legalizing marijuana, compared to Kelly and other contenders awaiting congressional approval.

Both Tom Price, who is up for head of Department of Human and Health Services, and Ben Carson, Trump’s pick for Department of Housing and Urban Development, have opposed legalizing marijuana whether it be for medical or recreational purposes.

However, the most outspoken potential appointment, who could have the greatest impact on marijuana laws in the U.S. if approved, has been Trump’s choice for attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. Sessions has crusaded against marijuana since he took to political life, making statements like, “Good people don’t smoke marijuana,” and cannabis is “not the kind of thing that ought to be legalized.”

The senator has yet to receive Judiciary Committee approval for the role of attorney general. However, during his meeting with senators Jan. 11, the senator did answer questions regarding his plans for marijuana, albeit very vaguely.

“I won’t commit to never enforcing federal law,” Sessions said when asked about conflicting federal and state marijuana laws and whether or not he would investigate and prosecute sick people who legally use marijuana products in approved states.

“But, absolutely, it’s a problem of resources for the federal government. The Department of Justice under [Attorneys General Loretta] Lynch and [Eric] Holder set forth some policies that they thought were appropriate to define what cases should be prosecuted in states that have legalized at least in some fashion some parts of marijuana.”

Sessions also noted that he would only move on marijuana laws based on what Congress allows.

“I think one obvious concern is that the United States Congress has made the possession of marijuana in every state, and distribution of it, an illegal act,” he said. “So, if you need — if that’s something that’s not desired any longer, Congress should pass a law to change the rule. It’s not so much the attorney general’s job to decide what laws to enforce. We should do our job and enforce laws effectively as we’re able.”