‘No Action’ on Marijuana in Trump’s First Part of Term
Donald Trump’s official 2025 inaugural portrait taken by Daniel Torok, Photo from the Public Domain
Trump unassumingly pressed lawmakers to support cannabis banking despite having ‘no action’ planned on marijuana, according to sources. The focal points of the president re-elect in the first few months back in office are revision of government spending, foreign policy and immigration.
Three months in, the White House, under re-elected President Donald Trump, intends “no action” on marijuana reform, according to reports. On the other hand, Trump reportedly tried to quietly push cannabis banking legislation to be included in a government funding bill at the end of last year as he returned to office.
Trump hasn’t talked about any cannabis-related issues since officially becoming a president in January 2025. The last time he did speak about it was when he expressed support for legalization while campaigning for the November elections.
Cannabis Reform Will Probably Again Have to Wait
A White House official told CNN in a report from April 1 that “no action is being considered at this time” as far as cannabis is concerned. This implies that attention may return to cannabis only with going forward. Which won’t be the first time - cannabis always ends up on some sort of ‘waiting list’ each time the federal leadership is changed.
CNN further reported that three sources familiar with negotiations said Trump and his transition team tried to convince Congress to include a measure which would protect banks working with state-legal cannabis operators.
Big disappointment followed last time when banking reform was in the foreground. A bill approved by a Senate committee in 2023 never got the see the light of day on a floor vote. The same reform was tagged as a legislative priority by the then-Democratic leadership controlling the chamber.
It is Unknown in Which Direction Marijuana Policy Might Move
In terms of banking reform, Trump could certainly try and influence the GOP majority Congress to advance the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act. Where he holds more power, however, is the ongoing rescheduling process, initiated by his previous, President Joe Biden. This process has stalled as power in government transitioned this winter.
There are both good and bad signals from how things might move forward from here on. The newly-elected Department of Justice appointee Pam Bondi (former Florida Attorney General) has so far refused to make statements on how marijuana policy is going to be handled.
The DEA is currently led by Terrance Cole, who has previously raised concern about the threats of marijuana, saying that it increases suicide risk among younger users. Anti-cannabis officials are also inside the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
At the same time, senior Republicans believe that pro-marijuana messages could help attract younger voters in 2026. Favoring legalization, in general, seems to be on the up among all ranks of the right-wing party. “A 57% majority of Republicans ages 18 to 29 favor making marijuana legal for medical and recreational use, compared with 52% among those ages 30 to 49 and much smaller shares of older Republicans,” according to a Pew Research Center survey from 2024, which also found that 6 out of 10 Americans are pro legal weed.
The Republican party is aware of the facts. A March 6 memo obtained by CNN acknowledges that within Republican circles “there’s no significant political or demographic group that doesn’t believe cannabis should be legal for consenting adults.”
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Stephen Andrews
